


the rubble or our sins

by axzanier



Series: Sideverse of Alyx Silver AU [4]
Category: The Invisible Man (TV 2000)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-02
Updated: 2015-03-09
Packaged: 2018-03-16 00:35:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 63,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3467834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/axzanier/pseuds/axzanier
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unexpected visitor forces Darien to take a hard look at his life and how he really wants to live it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 

 

  
Title:  _the rubble or our sins_

 

 

Author: A. X. Zanier

Status: Complete (60k+ words)

Rating: R (Language, violence, sexual situations, the usual)

Fandom:  _The Invisible Man_  (SciFi, 2000), The Pretender (NBC 1996)

Disclaimer: a) The characters and basic story ideas of  _The Invisible Man_  are the property of others including, but not limited to Matt Greenberg, Studios USA, Stu Segall Productions and NBC Universal. b) The characters and basic story ideas of  _The Pretender_ are the property of others including, but not limited to 20th Century Fox Television, MTM Entertainment, Mitchell/Van Sickle Productions, and NBC Studios. Any additional characters or story ideas are mine. I make no money from this intellectual exercise. c) This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any opinions or views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the author and are used for storytelling purposes only.

Sequel/Series: The Invisible Man (AS AU), cameo by The Pretender

Timeline: Part of the sideverse that includes The Ghost in the Crowd, Leverage, etc. Follows Tartan.

Spoilers: Probably. Does it really matter after all these years?

 

**the rubble or our sins**

 

_Homer, arguably one of the great Greek poets, said, "For rarely are sons similar than their fathers: most are worse and a few are better than their fathers."_

_Better or worse? I can't say for sure; it's not like we've sat down and compared notes, but similar? Can't argue that._

_I'm kinda the poster child for following in my father's footsteps._

 

"Comfy?"

Alyx sighed heavily from within the embrace of the hammock strung between two trees in the far corner of the back yard. "D, don't make me get up and hurt you," she grumbled, glaring up at him. "I drove the last four hours if you recall."

"Amazing what you can do with cruise control," Darien countered with, making her frown ever so slightly. "Keepy said you were to take it easy for at least a week, which you are going to do even if I have to hog tie you." The idea of which conjuring up all sorts of images that would do little to allow her to heal, but would probably be lots of fun, if sweaty.

The Keep had insisted his girl was fine, mostly anyway, but had encouraged the Official to allow them to take the recovery time off together, which meant they could get away for a few days. He hadn't been about to look a gift horse in the mouth, since it had been far, far too long she he and Alyx had had any quality alone time without some disaster at the agency cropping up that needed their immediate attention.

He planned on taking full advantage of the next few days even if they did nothing more than lay in this hammock and just be with each other.

"Like to see you try," she muttered under her breath. "I'm fine… mostly."

And she was. He had to believe that or he'd drive both of them crazy with his worry. "Yeah, 'cause a bullet hole in your thigh is part of a normal day." She grinned, and he shook his head, realizing he'd walked right into that particular wall of reality. "Okay, maybe it is for you, but even I've only managed to get shot a couple times. You seem to be a bullet magnet."

"Hey, a lot more people shoot at me," she argued, the statement defensive and scary in ways he usually tried not to think about.

"No kidding." Lots more people. Not that he and Hobbes didn't get shot at on a regular basis, but they had each others backs. Alyx, more often than not, was sent out on her own and while she did have the advantage of superpowers, there were times, like this one, where even that wasn't enough. She'd taken a sniper round to her left thigh, which had, according to Claire "barely nicked the bone", but had left Alyx gimping about and on the bench for the time being. Darien suspected the damage to actually be worse than the good doctor claimed, but had been afraid to ask. He would just do his best to take care of her as much as she would allow. She, as stubborn as she could be, hell, strong as she was, she rarely relied on anyone else for anything. Partners, equals, is what she wanted, what she needed and he made every effort to do that for her. Yeah, he used to be an idiot, but she'd proven time and time again that being jealous and assuming the worst was just plain stupid.

She would always be there for him. The least he could do was the same.

"What are you brooding over now?"

He supposed he should not be surprised she'd picked up on the tenor of his thoughts, it wasn't like either of them could easily prevent her from knowing what went on his head at all times. Granted she gave him every bit of privacy that she could, but when he worried, or as she had so aptly pointed out, brooded, there was little chance she wouldn't call him on it.

"Dinner," he answered without hesitation, which made her snicker at the obvious lie. And he appreciated her lack of follow up allowing him to keep things he wanted to himself, to himself. If only in the short term. An illusion of privacy admittedly, but needed all the same. "What? Not like there's any food that hasn't mutated into new life forms in the fridge. We haven't been here in months."

She visually poo-pooed his concerns. "There's delivery in this one horse town, we'll order some… in a couple hours."

"What are we gonna do till then?" he asked, wondering what she had in mind. Part of him hoping the 'tied down' thoughts of earlier would actually come into play.

"Well, since this hammock is designed for two, I was hoping for some quality cuddling time with my guy. Especially, since tomorrow we actually have to get started on packing everything up."

"I take it this will be my only opportunity for serious procrastination," he said, trying to sound unhappy about it even though it had been his decision to pack up the house. They had their own place now, with lots of empty rooms to fill and a secure room to move those files to and with Alyx being hurt it seemed like the perfect time to deal with it all.

"Well, maybe not your only time, depends on how diligently you work," she countered with, look serious.

"Very diligently, promise, for a few hours every day. Beyond that my efforts may be half-assed at best." He made the valiant effort to look as serious as her. They were together without the onus of the Agency hanging over their heads, and while the reasons for coming here were personal to him and important, he also wanted to take the time to be himself for a change and Darien Fawkes had never been one for doing the responsible thing any longer than absolutely necessary. Still, he appreciated her attempts to keep him on track. "This… this is important to me, baby."

"I know, bub. And you can always change your mind. The rental option is still on the table." She reached out to grasp his hand, twining their fingers together.

He shook his head. They'd had this discussion, several times, gone over it and over it until they had worn the topic out and she still would support any decision he would make, even if he changed his mind a dozen times. And he had; dozens and dozens of times, but this place had never really been his  _home_  and because of that there was little reason to hold onto to it. "It's time."

She gazed up at him solemnly, accepting his words as they stood. "Okay. Now, about that procrastination?"

"Yes, ma'am." After some careful shifting he lay down with Alyx on her side, head on his chest, their fingers still entwined. "You are going to have to do all the heavy lifting, you know that right?"

She snorted. "That would be because I can lift more than you. You carry the important stuff."

"And that would that be… what exactly?" Really curious as to where she was going with her mysterious statement.

"Me, of course," she answered. "Am I not the most important item here?"

He kissed her on the forehead. "Always."

 

~^~^~^~

 

They had raided the local hardware store, picked up several insanely bright utility lights, a few fans and a couple of camp chairs so Alyx would not have to sit on the floor for any length of time. He had stocked and dragged the cooler, which doubled as a foot rest, up as well so they wouldn't have to climb down the fairly steep ladder just to ease their thirst.

So the formerly dark and dusty attic was now bright as day, the lone window open, the breeze being pulled in and tossed about the expansive space thanks to the aforementioned fans. Once the window had been opened, Alyx had encouraged all the dust to vacate the premises allowing them to breathe without their sinuses screaming at them and sending her into sneezing fits. While awfully cute, she would not be able to get much work done if she had to escape every thirty minutes or so just to suck in some clean air.

Yeah, a company came in every couple of weeks to take care of the lawn, dust, set the place to rights, and let him know if there were any problems, but they didn't touch the attic or the basement. Both kept locked, the only keys in his possession. There wasn't much left in the basement, anything of even vague importance had already been removed and given to the Agency on the off chance it might have helped with the gland research. A moot point now, thanks to Alyx and her lab, but at the time it had been yet another straw to grasp at.

The secret room in the attic, however, they would deal with personally, the files within never out of their sight until secure in the room specially built for them in their house back in San Diego. Other interesting tidbits had already been secured there, but they needed to add these, mostly so they could have time to go through them in detail. There was a chance, slim admittedly, that information on the black ops group after Alyx could be buried in them.

For now the secret room remained locked, hidden behind the false brick wall built along one entire end of the room, blocking the window - thus the need for fans to create a cross-breeze.

"You sure you want to take this junk back with us?" Darien stood dead center in the attic, the only area where the ceiling was high enough for him to stand up fully, his hair missing the center beam by mere inches.

Alyx raised an eyebrow. "Junk?" She waved at some oversized piece of furniture to his left. "That is an early 19th century highboy, probably worth six figures. Believe it or not I adore antiques, and will be more than happy to have this in our home."

Darien blinked. He had no clue that there had been anything of value anywhere in this house. Except maybe the silver his aunt only brought out for special occasions. He scratched the back of his head. "Uh, is there a lot of that kind of stuff here?"

Alyx laughed softly. "Yes, actually. Which is why I told you we'd need to arrange a truck. Everything up here is going back with us."

Darien sighed softly, not overly surprised. They'd roughed out what to take, including all the new bedroom pieces he had purchased, what to sell, and what to donate to the local Goodwill, but he hadn't realized that she planned on bring the entire attic with them to San Diego. "You are definitely going to have to get these downstairs. I can't figure out how they got them up here."

"They used a block and tackle. The mount is still there." Alyx pointed and he turned to see that she was correct. On the center beam above the attic access was the base for a basic pulley system that he had never noticed the whole time he had lived here.

"Huh. Shows how observant I was as a kid." Not that he'd spent a tremendous amount of time in this attic during his misspent youth.

She cocked her head to the side as if debating whether or not she should speak.

"What?" he prompted, wondering where her curiosity had pulled her this time.

"Where did you grow up? Before Cold Springs?"

That question startled him in ways he didn't completely understand. She rarely asked about his life before the Agency unless it involved something work-related. "Why?"

" 'Cause I'm curious. We talk about my childhood, a lot, but almost never yours and never before Cold Springs. San Diego feels like home to you, not here," she answered, voice quiet.

"Like you haven't researched my entire life's story," he sneered. But even he knew it was nothing more than a delaying tactic; an effort to avoid talking about a past that still hurt too much to think about, much less discuss aloud in the bright light of day.

She shook her head, obviously not surprised at his efforts at obfuscation. "You know I haven't. And you don't have to say anything now. I just… I can feel how hard this is for you no matter how certain you are that it is time to move on from here. And it seems to have more to do with your parents than Celia and Peter."

_Damn_. He should have known she'd pick up on that even if she were gone more often than not, she'd become so sensitive that even when halfway 'round the world she could see his dreams and he'd been dreaming about his mom and dad quite a bit lately. He moved over next to her chair, being careful to not whack his head into the angled ceiling and plopped down on the floor before her. "You've never asked before."

"You never felt willing to talk about it till now." She reached out and ruffled his hair. "I mean, you've mentioned your mom in passing now and then, but that's about it."

"There isn't much to say, really. Yeah, we lived in San Diego. I even remember where, a crappy duplex in a crappy part of town that hasn't gotten any better over the years." That was an understatement. He'd driven past the place about a month ago when Alyx had been away on a job. He hadn't planned it, just cruising about after work while debating eating out or ordering in and found himself driving past the only home he really remembered. The one where he'd still had a family and they had been, at least as far as he'd been concerned, happy.

Before the people most important to him had begun to leave him.

"But part of you still sees it as home," she stated, not a single bit of doubt in her.

He ducked his head. "Yeah, I guess I do. In a way this house never did." He sighed heavily and reached out to take her hand into his. "It was the place where I had a family. Broken and damaged, but mine, with all of us together. I just… we were happy. I was happy. And then… and then Dad was gone." And the whole of his young world had fallen to pieces before his confused and hurt eyes.

"Do you know why?"

He lifted his head to meet her concerned gaze. "Then? No. Figured out later that Mom had thrown him out for getting arrested again." He chuckled drily. "He sucked as a thief."

"Yes, I suppose he did," she agreed, look enigmatic. "Yet, you still miss him."

He shook his head. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Not meant that way." She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "You know there is a trunk full of family stuff over there. Found it the first time we were up here. Just never had time to get back to it."

He perked up at that. "Where?"

"Thattaway." She waved off at the area behind her where several other oversized pieces of furniture were. All of which were probably going back to San Diego with them. She pushed herself upright. "C'mon."

He stayed put, allowing her to use his shoulder to brace herself as she gingerly put weight on her bad leg. He waited until she'd walked two cautious steps away before getting up and following her. Several pieces of furniture shifted without being touched, revealing not one, but three trunks against the wall. All clearly old and appearing to be old school steamer trunks complete with oversized locks. He squatted down and opened the far right one just because it was there. Inside he found what appeared to be an ancient wool blanket, which he delicately shifted to discover that underneath lay china. A complete set right down to the gravy boat from the looks of it. He carefully lifted up a plate to examine it. Hand painted for certain, the sworls and curls along the edge quite possibly silver, copper and gold, which would make them expensive at the very least. Flipping it over he discovered them to be dated 1897 and a company name he didn't recognize.

He whistled softly. "Damn. If I had known about these I wouldn't have needed to break into the Cooper's."

Alyx leaned over his shoulder. "Damn indeed. Be gentle, those are worth a small fortune, especially if it's a complete set. You, my dear, have an actual family heirloom here."

"From where?" he wondered aloud, unable to imagine his family having anything of value.

"Oooh, a project for you. Mom's side or Dad's."

"Or Donovan's." Not that he could really see Uncle Pete giving a rat's ass about dinnerware. No, that was more Celia's style, which meant his Mom's side of the family. Too bad there was no one left to ask about it. Least no one he was aware of. He set the plate back down in its spot , shifted the blanket back into place, and closed the trunk. "How the hell am I going to do that?"

"The wonderful world wide web. Ancestry.com has a excellent rep. And there's a few tricks I can teach you if you want to do the search all on your own. Or there are plenty of private firms out there that will do the legwork and keep it on the down low for you." She ran her fingers through his hair causing him to shiver in unexpected pleasure. A simple gesture of comfort he appreciated. "You have every right to know your family history, and more, you deserve to know it. I know how lost you have felt, and while having me has helped, you still wonder and I will do everything I can to assist."

He gazed up at her, once again impressed at how she always knew the right thing to say at any given moment. "Thanks. We'll sic your supercomputer on it when we get back home." He tugged until she'd sat down next to him, her leg angled awkwardly to accommodate the impressive bandages. "Now, should I play eeny meeny or will you point me in the right direction."

She laughed and lifted the lid on the center trunk.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

" _The only thing you sometimes have control over is perspective. You don't have control over your situation. But you have a choice about how you view it." This from a man who plays the captain of sci-fi's most famous starship._

_Trouble is when your perspective has been set for so many years that change can be a challenging one._

 

The house looked empty. Mostly because it was. Every item in the house, including all those mementos from their childhood Celia had kept, poured over, sorted and moved to an appropriate pile. Turned out some of those games she'd saved had been worth some money to collectors on eBay and, though a cut went to the third party dealer, had already put a tidy sum into his pockets. Furniture had been separated into keep, donate, or auction. Personal items, the mundane ones, clothes, linens and such were donated to the local Goodwill if still in usable condition, the rest tossed as filler for the local dump. Jewelry went into a lockbox that would be travelling back with them to be sorted out later. While his eyes remained good even he could mistake a quality CZ for the real thing. The furniture, which included his uncle's desk at the last moment, had been loaded onto a truck and were already on their way back to San Diego.

Tonight they would be "roughing it" on an air mattress that they had been sleeping on in their new house when they'd first moved in and leaving in the morning. They planned on being back in a few weeks to begin renovations on the cabin, which he had decided to keep along with the, as it turned out, valuable acreage it sat on. They both still wanted a place to escape to that was, comparatively speaking, off the grid, and while primitive now, when they were through it would only appear to be so. The place would become a safe house for friends and family alike and given the fact that several of said family members were on the run for one reason or another, it damn well became a necessity.

Alyx lay on the mattress, leg propped up on pillows in a vain effort to keep the throbbing down to a minimum. She'd overdone it today, to the point where she'd ripped the half-healed wound open and managed to bleed through the bandages still wrapped about her thigh. They'd been watching movies on her laptop and just taking it easy. The work was done, a couple days early at that, but the drive home would still be taxing so he'd been attempting to get her to relax without any real success. She felt tense and like she needed to talk to him, but hadn't yet screwed up the courage to speak.

He hit pause on the movie, leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. "What's up, baby?"

She sighed. "Broadcasting am I?"

"Only a little. Was there another piece you wanted to keep or something?" He had to admit to be surprised at the value of some of the pieces, especially in this day and age of build it yourself furniture. The gentleman from the auction house had gushed over the items they had offered to him and had tried to convince Alyx to allow him to take several others that she had chosen to take with them. He'd gone away with the assurance that if she did ever choose to sell that he would be called first. She hadn't  _promised_  so she'd probably been shoveling, but the dweeb had clearly been willing to do pretty much anything to get his greedy mitts on that highboy that had been collecting dust in the attic for the last couple of decades.

"No, nothing like that. I need to tell you something is all." She had her poker face firmly in place, but that overflow of emotions he currently got from her felt like the surface of a storm tossed lake. Rough with whitecaps and spray. Whatever she needed to tell him would not be of the happy-making.

Darien put a faux-concerned look on his face to cover that fact that he was swiftly becoming concerned. "Don't tell me you've changed your mind about living together."

She drummed up a smile for him. "No. No. And, oh, no."

"Then what, sweet thing? Did I do something excessively stupid?" He didn't think he had, but being a guy the stupid occasionally happened and though she often let it pass, now and then he did leave damage in his wake.

She rolled over and faced him, taking his hands into her own. "What if I said your father had never been a thief?"

Darien blinked. That had to be about the last thing he expected to hear from her. He chuckled. "That's one of the few things I know to be true about him. It's what broke my parents up."

"You know they never divorced, right?"

Huh. "That I didn't know. Weird. Guess I always assumed that they had. Not that any of the adults ever talked about it. Least not when I was paying attention." He rubbed his thumbs along the side of her hands. "Why would you think he wasn't a thief. I've seen his record."

She tipped her her head down to gaze at their entwined hands before responding. "Remember when Kevin visited?"

He nodded. "Yeah. So?"

She met his eyes, her control back in place, only the merest hints of the turmoil inside being felt through his hands. "We were looking for a ghost. One that wasn't Kevin."

"Okay, yeah, I remember that morning." He scratched his head, thinking back. He'd been gone for several weeks thanks to a personality suppressor that had given his dead brother control of his body, and when he'd come back he'd been thrown right into the line of fire with the details sketchy at best. "Thought that not-rogue USSA agent was the ghost? Forrester Perdue?"

"He was… is. But that name is just an alias. Much like Alyx Silver is for me." She seemed to be trying to lead him down a particular path, but all he could see was the underbrush blocking the trail.

Darien wondered if he looked as confused as he felt. "Guess I'm missing something. What does this Perdue have to do with anything?"

She sighed softly. "There is no gentle way to say this."

"Say what? Alyx…" He shook his head. He was not going to get it on his own, which annoyed him on some level, and he didn't want to play Twenty Questions to figure out what she was trying to avoid saying. "Just tell me, please?"

She nodded slowly in clear resignation. "While I was trying to save the Agency, yet again, I discovered that Forrester Perdue is really Mason Fawkes. And, yes, I have the documentation to prove it."

Darien sat there in stunned silence for a long moment then burst out laughing. "My Dad, the two-bit thief, is really an assassin for the government? No fucking way."

The laughter died quickly when he realized Alyx's expression hadn't changed one whit.

"Alyx, tell me you're kidding?" He could only hope she had been kidding, that what she had just told him was nothing but an elaborate joke, but given the distress she'd been giving off the last hour or so he feared it was nothing more than the cold, hard facts.

"Wish I could," she told him softly. "I know this is a lot to take in, but you deserve to know the truth."

The truth. One of those things they promised to tell each other… when they could. Work, the job forced them to keep some pretty big secrets even from each other and they had promised to not allow that to impact their relationship, but this… "How long have you known?"

"Six months give or take," she answered, carefully shifting about to sit up and face him.

"And you couldn't tell me before now?" Yeah, he was a bit outraged. This was big. Important. A truth about his family that he'd had no clue about and, like she'd said, one that he deserved to know.

"No." She shook her head.

"Did… did Kevin know?"

"I talked to him about it, yes. He had information I needed and you weren't exactly available."

The reminder valid, but it still stung. She'd told Kevin, but not him. "Who else knows? Claire? The 'Fish?"

"Just Bobby. I needed his opinion on the data."

Darien surged to his feet, jaw clenching in his ire. "Hobbes has known for six months that my Dad is… wasn't... God damn it." He stalked away, hands running through his hair in an effort to keep his temper and not go after her. "Why wait so long to tell me?"

"Honestly, I was hoping I'd never need to tell you." She followed his pacing, but remained seated, her look seemingly calm. Her words, however, not making any sense to him.

"And what the hell does that mean?" he snapped, his temper fraying by the moment, feeling so very betrayed. After everything they'd been through in recent months, to have her keep a secret this big from him… it hurt and made him question all they had done to move their relationship forward.

"It means I gave Mason the chance to tell you himself and he didn't," she explained, looking up at him, clearly not thrilled with his attitude, but not about to apologize either.

And maybe she had nothing to apologize for. Except, if she had given his Dad the option of coming forward... "You spoke to him," Darien hissed, anger and disappointment making his sight color over to red.

If she were aware of his unreasoning anger she kept it to herself. "Yes, I did. At his request. He apparently wanted to make certain what I did was in your best interest, which, in case you have forgotten, always is."

Fuck. Her tone had gone ice cold, the look in her eyes pained, but emotionally he got nothing. She had locked everything down tight. A trick she had learned when kept at The Centre with her brother Jarod. Of course, that field trip had also markedly increased her abilities, scarily so and yet she had never,  _ever_  used them on him in anger, though right now she just might if he kept lashing out at her.

But who else was there. She'd discovered the truth and then kept it from him for half a year, protecting a man who didn't deserve it given he'd abandoned his family nearly three decades ago. "Like he gave a damn about me," he groused, pacing away from her before he said something he would regret.

"More than you know," she responded, getting to her feet. "I get that you're mad, and why, but I had to give him the chance to come forward on his own. He didn't want to put you at risk by coming out into the open."

"I'm not a child," Darien snapped.

"Which I pointed out." She limped in the direction of the kitchen. "You may be an adult, but you will always be  _his child_." She shrugged. "I can relate to that."

She disappeared around the corner and for an instant he debated charging after her, but instead paused, took in a deep breath and blew it out to a slow count of ten. And that was enough to get him to calm down and look at things from her perspective, which is probably why she had left the room in the first place. An out of sight out of mind kind of deal. She stayed away from her family, her children especially, to protect them, to allow them as normal lives as possible while being raised by their uncle and thinking both their parents were dead. Oh and having superpowers. Alyx drew attention away from them by being the bright shining star in the sky and keeping the eyes of all those who coveted them upon her.

Dangerous, yes, but it would be far worse for her should her children come to harm. And if push came to shove she would reveal herself and to hell with the consequences. She would do  _anything_  for her family. At this point in time, however, staying away remained the best, and safest for them, course of action.

So, was she implying his father had done the same? Gotten out of their lives to protect them? That he did, in fact, care?

Hard to believe, but possible. It simply did not fit in the well worn and biased world-view he had of his father.

Alyx reappeared then with a bottle of whiskey and two plastic cups in her hands; the minimal food left boxed up to be moved or tossed in the morning. Her timing perfect as always as he had just begun to realize he was in need of a stiff drink.

He went to her, set hands on her shoulders and forehead against hers. "Sorry, baby."

"No need. I doubt I would have reacted half as well to similar news."

He chuckled ruefully. "One of these days I'll have to learn to not have a bad case of messengeritis."

Although he had managed an apology she felt tense under his hands. "He's a fool for not coming forward to tell you. No, you wouldn't be thrilled with the news, but it should come from him. When the time is right I will be there to tell my kids, they need to hear it from me." She opened the bottle and poured two fingers into each cup, offering them up to him so he could take one. "Least that way they know who to hate for all the deceptions."

He swallowed down a mouthful before saying, "They won't hate you. Mad for a bit, yeah, but never hate." He watched as she leaned heavily against wall as she drank the whiskey and poured more.

Her shoulders drooped, not able to meet his eyes at the moment. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, but based on your reaction theirs won't be much better."

He frowned slightly. That hadn't been his intent, he'd simply reacted to very surprising news in the only way that made sense. Hell, he was still in shock and had about a million questions to ask her. "When did you meet with him?"

"A couple a weeks after the Royce sitch was cleared up." She shifted slightly, getting the weight off her left leg, the bandage bloody again. "He was aware of everything that had happened. Kevin being back and why. He'd even done his homework on me, though he was more than a bit surprised that I could Quicksilver." She sighed softly. "He cares, make no mistake, but I no longer agree with his whole staying away to protect his family line. You're pretty much all that's left and it's way past time you knew the truth."

Darien's lightbulb went off then. "So that's why Kev wanted me to get in contact with Grams."

Alyx tipped her head slightly in a clear request to provide more information.

"My Dad's mother. Still alive as far as I know. Owns a huge orange grove north of the city." He ducked his head, swirling the last bit of whiskey in his glass before continuing. "Mom didn't take us to see her much after Dad left. Probably thought she wouldn't be a great influence as a grandma if she had managed to raise a thief for a son."

She poured more alcohol into his glass. "Instead she raised one of the best assassins in the country. Little wonder Royce wanted to you use to continue Perdue's work."

"How much do you know?" He hated that the anger crept back into his voice and demeanor. He had to wonder if the better question would be how much she  _didn't_ know.

"I'm the one who vetted all Royce's files, so everything. Your Dad has had other handlers over the years, so those mission files are mostly redacted, but I have clearance to read the originals."

"You'll give me the files? Even though I don't have clearance?" He found that hard to believe given her love of the rules, but, then again, this was family and when it was about family the rules went flying violently out the window.

"If you want me to, yes. I think you'd get more out of it if you asked him though."

"He ain't exactly here," he sniped, wishing he could stop directing his anger at the situation on her. "Crap," he muttered.

"I'll go," she said, but didn't move. She just looked him right in the eyes and waited to see how he would react.

He clenched his jaw, not able to let go of the anger.

She finished the drink in her hand, set the bottle and cup down on the floor and turned away.

"Alyx, where are you going?"

"To a hotel. I'll see you back in San Diego."

She made it out of the room and halfway to the front door, next to which sat their suitcases, before he realized he was being a fucking idiot. He charged forward and managed to get between her and the door before she got her hand on the knob.

"Stop, please."

"Darien, I'm not upset. I knew you would be angry and prepared accordingly. I'll be fine and you need the time alone." She didn't look upset, more resigned, as if she had expected this, but had hoped it wouldn't happen. The fact that she knew him so well both annoyed and pleased him. He had always considered himself unpredictable… until now. Until Alyx.

"No. I've spent enough time alone." He reached out to cup her cheek, the skin cool to the touch. "I'm sorry. I just… it hurts to know you kept this from me, but I get why. My Dad has no clue what you are capable of and probably thinks you would never tell me."

"No one has a clue what I'm capable of, including myself," she grumbled, taking a few steps back, wincing as she did so.

He followed after her, setting a gentle hand on her shoulder to hold her steady. "Easy there. You were hurt worse than Claire told me, weren't you." Obvious in retrospect and he'd been letting her do whatever she wanted for the last few days even though he knew better. She just faked hale and whole so well that he let himself forget she'd been hurt badly enough to be sidelined and permitted to go on this trip to heal. Which she had clearly not done. Not enough anyway.

"Let's go with yes for now." She shifted, trying to get her weight, slight as it was, off her bad leg, only to have her right knee try to fold on her.

Quick as he could, and without losing his grip on the drink in his hand, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her back to the living room where they had set up camp. "Interesting bluff," he commented as he went to his knees and set her on the mattress.

"Wasn't a bluff. I was going to leave."

He kissed her softly. "I know." Then sat on the floor before her. "Not that I don't believe you, but can I see the proof you have on my Dad?"

"You sure?"

He nodded. "Positive."

She waved at her laptop. "I only have the basics with me, the detailed files are back home, but you are more than welcome to peruse what I have."

"And answer questions?" he asked, certain he would have dozens of them for her.

"Are you sure you don't want to ask him?"

He sighed, pretty sure they'd already gone this way. "He's not here… Wait, do you know where he is?"

She frowned slightly, as if uncertain if she should answer truthfully. "Precisely, no, but it shouldn't take me long to track him down."

"Christ, you are trouble on two feet, aren't you."

She glanced down at her bum leg.

"On one foot then. And still twice as much trouble as anyone else." He laughed softly, glad he could make her smile after being such a boneheaded idiot. "How about you show me the files, and answer what you can. The details… well, they'll have to wait for a reunion with dear old Dad."

"Sure." She reached out to run her fingers along his jaw. "I can still go. You feel like you need to be alone to scream at the universe."

He grasped her hand, turning his head to kiss the palm. "You'd be right, of course, but… But I don't want to do this alone. Don't want pride make me shut you out just because you kept your word. He's had thirty years to come forward, it's not your fault he didn't take you seriously."

"My curse. So sweet and innocent seeming, that's me."

Darien burst out in laughter. Yeah, she might just look sweet and innocent, but she was dangerous as anyone could be, more so in some ways because of her deceptive looks. "Do not leave. Not tonight. I can't promise I won't get angry again, but I'm sure I need you here, okay?"

She nodded. The amusement having faded to a far more serious expression. "Okay." She waved at the laptop, the movie vanishing and replaced with files. "Ready?"

"As I can be," he answered, moving the computer closer to them. "This is nuts, you know that, right?"

She chuckled. "Kevin said the same thing. It's not a bad thing though, just a paradigm shift."

"Like I needed another one of those in my life," he groused, then dropped it. He wanted to yell, scream and rant, but for now he would hold it in, saving it for the person who actually deserved the harsh word. "So, what are we looking at here?"

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

"Fawkes, what the hell is the matter with you today? You and the kid didn't get into a fight, did you? "Cause, my money will be on her."

 

The humor didn't fall flat so much as splatter in every direction upon making contact with the concrete. He hadn't see Alyx in a couple days other than in passing and tense would be the politest you could call the atmosphere between them. The information she'd given him more than enough to keep the anger at her withholding it simmering beneath the surface. She'd moved out of the master bedroom, citing the climb a bit too much for her leg at the moment, which, while true enough, had been nothing more than an excuse to not sleep in the same room as him while his ire still churned.

Not that she'd been sleeping near as he could tell.

And because of that she still wasn't healing as quickly as expected.

Hell, far as he could tell she wasn't healing  _at all._

Not that he had any details as neither Alyx nor the Keeper were telling him anything of value. Alyx was riding a desk, while he and Hobbes were off on the schlep job of the week. Darien sighed softly. Maybe talking to Bobby would help. "Not a fight. She told me about my Dad."

"Ah," Hobbes mumbled, looking awfully guilty.

"She already ratted you out," Darien informed him, which made the guilty look just deepen. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Hobbes sighed heavily. "Because I agreed with the kid. Telling you, least right after that sitch with your bro, would have done more harm than good. I talked to her a few weeks later and she said she had a plan and that you would be told, I just didn't know when."

And that hurt. He and Hobbes were partners and needed to trust each other. And if Darien couldn't trust his partner to have his back when something this big, this damn important came up then when could he? "And you couldn't tell me all on your own?"

Hobbes' head snapped around at the sneering tone Darien utterly failed, or even tried, to prevent. "Yeah, I coulda, but I trust the kid. If she has a plan, there is a reason behind it, a damn good one I'm certain, and it ain't my place to go messing with your relationship any more than I already have to."

"It's my fucking life," Darien groused, wondering when the world had decided he needed to be hand fed pablum for every little thing.

"Yeah, it is, and if you had been around at the time and not your brother you woulda been the one we turned to for answers. Instead, we waited, which really hasn't impacted you in the grand scheme of things, yet you have decided to get your knickers in a twist over it." Hobbes flipped on the turn signal and took the next right, pulling into a strip mall, which Darien was pretty certain was not where they had been heading to. Bobby threw the van into park and twisted about in his seat to face his partner directly. "I'm not saying it was right, but it was the best plan at the time and if you're mad fine, I get it. But throw your hissy fit and get over it because we have work to do."

"I've lost six months I could have had with my Dad," Darien snarled, words he hadn't yet said to Alyx, but that would be coming soon, if he could get her alone for more than five minutes.

"You've lost nothing," Hobbes snapped right back. "You didn't even know he was around till the kid told you. So cut the bullshit and the righteous indignation. Your father could have come forward any time in the last six months and chose not to, why ain't you mad at him?"

"Who says I'm not?" Darien grumbled, knowing Bobby was right and hating it. "Alyx probably chased him away."

"I doubt that. If you being a royal ass never did a few words from the kid wouldn't either."

"You fall for the 'stayed away to protect us' line too?"

"I'd say the kid would be the expert on that subject and I'm not about to argue the point with her." Hobbes rubbed the top of his head. "Fawkes, she hasn't told me any details, to protect your old man is what I understand. Shouldn't you be talking to her instead of shutting her out?"

Darien ground his teeth for a long moment. "Not gonna happen."

"Then talk to someone else," Hobbes grumbled. "I ain't got answers for you and the kid only knows what she dug up. We can't give you what you really want and your father ain't gonna come forward till he's ready."

"No shit," Darien groused, hating he'd talked himself back into the same fucking corner. Then again, maybe there was someone who would answer his questions, though he'd have to find the time to get there and it would not be happening until this job had been completed.

"Fawkes," Bobby growled in warning. "Do not use this as an excuse to push her away. You just bought a goddamned house for fuck's sake. Do you really think she did this just to upset you?"

Darien shook his head. No, she hadn't done it to upset him. She'd tried to get his father to act like one and instead he'd just maintained the party line - not giving a flying fuck about his family. Or at least not appearing to if she were right about his dad's reasons for staying away all these years. Hell, when push came to shove he  _had_  come forward, if only to speak to her, which was more than he had done in decades. "I'm not trying to push her away."

"Sure you are. You expect them to leave when everything is going good, so when she doesn't you lash out, figuring she's gonna leave anyway, might as well be on your terms and not hers." Hobbes pounded the steering wheel for emphasis. "She ain't leaving you, Fawkes. Not now. Not ever near as I can tell. Which might just prove she's crazier than you when red-eye." His harsh tone softened. "She loves you, give her a chance to prove it."

He hated when others could see his motives before he did. Usually it was Alyx who did that, and damn it, she probably had, which is why she had given him his space. Out of sight, out of mind, indeed. And because she had said nothing directly, Hobbes had been forced to smack his partner upside the head with the truth. Moving in together had been her idea; to prove to him that when she came home it would be to him and only him. She had been the one to suggest buying a house over renting an apartment. She had pushed for them to move in sooner. She wanted this, wanted to be with him no matter how much of a dick he could be.

She loved  _him._

And, damn it, Hobbes was right, he did still expect her to leave. And the closer they got the sooner he expected it to happen, all the evidence to the contrary. Was he still upset she hadn't told him about his dad? He didn't know anymore. Should he be? Probably not. Which meant he had no reason to be angry with Hobbes either.

So, he manned up and shoved what remained of his anger into a darkened corner of his mind intending to ignore it for the time being. He could deal with it later, after the job had been completed. "Hissy fit over," he announced.

"Good," Hobbes said with a nod, putting the van back into gear. He waved at the file on the dash. "Look that over and give me your take on it."

"Wait? You want me to actually work? That's asking a bit much don't you think?" He put the full whine into his voice, causing Hobbes to shoot him a deadly look, before he realized Darien had been faking.

"You little shit, just read it over. Should be right up your alley."

Darien grinned and did as asked, still grumbling under his breath about not being paid enough to actually  _work_.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

_Julie Andrews, well known for playing a nanny that brings families together, had this to say about her own, "My sense of the family history is somewhat sketchy, because my mother kept a great deal to herself."_

_Now, my mom died when I was fairly young, so what I know about my family is from eavesdropping on adult conversations. That's how I found out my dad was a thief._

_Or so they thought._

_Turns out anything I thought I_ _**knew** _ _had little or no relation with the truth._

 

He had no idea what kind of reception he would receive when he showed up on his grandmother's doorstep, so he'd come bearing gifts along with the questions. He also had an ancient photo album that had been in that one trunk they'd brought back from Cold Springs, dozens upon dozens pictures that Darien hadn't known existed. Probably a good thing given the way he'd shredded all he had found after his mom died. The angry phase of grieving hitting him especially hard. That had been the start of his acting out and it had never really ended truth be told, just gotten more focused. He'd been a horrible child to raise, he was certain, for Celia and Peter. Not the golden child that Kevin had been.

He'd hadn't seen his Grams in… two decades give or take a year or three. Celia and Peter had tried to keep in contact, but the physical distance between them made it difficult at best and downright impossible at worst, especially given all the adults involved not been young by any stretch of the imagination. He knew she was still alive, but that was about it. She might not even recognize him, and not because her mind had started to deteriorate as had happened with Celia. He had changed a lot since his last visit here; no longer the dour little boy who rarely felt anything other than anger and sadness, lashing out at any and everyone if given even the slightest opening. His pain visible on his face and in every action. His only joy coming from doing the craziest of things that got his adrenaline pumping and caused those witnessing his stunts to think he had a death wish; when in truth all he wanted was to feel something beyond anger and loneliness.

Little wonder he became a bit of an adrenaline junky. Even less wonder why Liz had chosen him for a protege. He must have seemed to be so naive and easy to manipulate.

After long minutes sitting in his car where he seriously debated turning about and just leaving he turned off the engine and climbed out with more than a touch of trepidation, only to be greeted with a sprightly, "Good morning, Darien," when no more than a few feet from the steps leading up to the porch.

"Hey, Grams," he replied ducking his head, impressed that she had recognized him after so many years. He barely recognized her, his memory of her visage being forced to compete with the woman in front of him. When had she gotten so  _old_?

She sighed heavily and set down her coffee cup. "Haven't I told you before to call me Madeline? Don't need the whole world knowing I'm old enough to have grandkids."

Darien managed a strained smile. This had not been what he'd expected at all. "Yes, ma'am," he replied, holding out the package of coffee to her. The one thing he remembered about her was her caffeine addiction. She drank coffee all day every day and probably would until the day she died. He didn't know if she owned a grinder, so had bought one of those as well.

She snorted. "You didn't have to bribe me."

He shrugged. "You don't know why I'm here yet."

She cocked her head, narrowing her eyes as she gazed up at him. "True enough." She set her coffee cup down on the table that just might be older than her. "So, why are you here?"

"How about I make us some of that coffee first?" he suggested, not quite certain how to handle her bluntness.

"I have a cup…. Unless you need it, of course. Maybe a shot of whiskey to get your courage up?"

Sadly, that sounded like a fine idea. "Caffeine, yes. Whiskey… maybe later. I want… need to talk about Dad."

"After all these years…" She shook her head. "I suppose it's as good a time as any." She pushed herself upright. "Well, come on then. Let's make that coffee and you can ask your questions."

 

~^~

 

"So, why now?" Grams asked as she settled back into the cushions of the sofa, cup of fresh coffee in her hand. No point in making it for one, and maybe it would ease the tension he felt between them. He had some hard questions to ask and some even harder truths to tell.

The place hadn't changed much from the way he remembered it. Everything looked smaller, of course, most especially her, and a bit more worn, but it was clear the place had not fallen apart as she got older and less able to move as freely. Watching her walk was painful, yet she carried herself like a lady, shoulders up and back straight, standing proud and tall, just as he remembered.

"I…" There would be no simple way to answer that, he'd had years to come visit and find out what he could about his father and he hadn't bothered, just assuming the little he'd been told or overheard over the years to be the truth and nothing but. He sighed softly, running one hand through his hair in a vain effort to ease his personal discomfort. "Let's just say the subject has come up recently. Was he a thief?"

She shook her head vehemently. "No. I don't care what they said, there is no way Mason Fawkes was a thief."

He had to be impressed by her faith in her son, regardless of what proof may exist. "I've seen his police record."

"So have I, doesn't mean I have to believe its real," she argued,the certainty in her mien a living thing.

"You ever ask him?" Blunt, perhaps, but Grams had never been big on the runaround.

She shook her head. "No. I haven't seen him since your mother threw him out. He didn't say goodbye to me either."

That she didn't sneer his mother's name impressed the hell of of him. That she'd never seen her son again, made him feel sorry for her. He'd lost his dad, whom he'd known only a few short years, she'd lost a the son she'd raised and watched grow into a man. "They never divorced," he said softly earning a look of surprise for an instant from his grandmother.

"Huh. He always was a stubborn fool. Not that he had much of a chance to win her back. She was gone, what? A few years later?" She shook her head. "A waste."

"Why did we go to Celia and not you?" he blurted out, as he'd wondered that a lot the last few days.

She gave him a wan smile, that twinkle in her eye lacking. "My husband, your grandfather, was already gone by then, and while I do not know what if any directions your mother had left in her will, I suspect a couple looked more appealing than a single woman, especially when her son had not been involved with the family for several years." She wagged a finger at him. "I suspect you would have turned out very differently if I'd been the one doing the disciplining."

Darien chuckled. "You'd be right." He had never gotten away with anything when here visiting, no reason he would have if she had raised him. "What if… what if I discovered Dad wasn't a thief?"

One eyebrow rose on her forehead. "Then what was he?"

Darien shook his head, not about to blurt out the truth he had learned so very recently. "I have learned that after the military he went to work for the government… as a spy." Close enough. He wasn't about to tell her that her son had become a professional killer, even if it was for the home team. No, dear old dad could drop that bomb in her lap himself.

She sat there in silence for long minutes, sipping at her coffee while she processed what Darien had told her. Hell, he still had trouble believing it even after seeing the evidence with his own eyes. "Then why does he have a record? Why a thief?"

"I have no idea why they chose jail time as his cover, maybe… maybe they wanted to get him away from his family. I've been given the impression that family and the spy life do not mix, and he clearly never told mom since until just a few months ago no one knew the truth."

"Months? You've known for months and are just telling me now?"

In that instant Darien understood why both Alyx and Hobbes had gotten irritated with him when he'd had the exact same gut reaction. He hadn't known all the facts behind the decision and had still assumed the worst. "No, I found out a week ago. This is the first chance I've had to get up here." He ducked his head. "To be honest I wasn't sure if you were still alive." He gave her a wan smile. "Sorry."

"No need to be. You were a child and had to do as your elders wished. Though you clearly chose to take after your father no matter how angry you were with him."

Darien sighed heavily. "Followed in his footsteps twice over as it turns out." He rubbed the back of his head, certain a headache would be making an appearance soon. "Not only am I a thief, but I work for the government now. And the irony is not lost on me."

"Kevin worked for the government as well, didn't he?"

Darien nodded. "Research though, not as a spy. He… He's the reason I ended up working for the Agency." He rubbed the back of his head. "Don't get me wrong, he probably… no, he  _did_  save my life by dragging me into this, but it wasn't anything I had ever wanted. Weird that it turns out I'm damn good at it."

"Are you happy?" Madeline asked, surprising him with the question.

"Yes, I suppose I am," he answered, knowing it was the truth. No, things weren't perfect, weren't how he expected his life to be, but what he had he would give up for nothing.

"Good enough," she told him, "That's what matters most in the end." She patted the cushion next to her. "You brought that photo album for a reason, let's go through it and I'll tell you about your father."

He nodded, getting up to grab the album. She'd pulled out a few of her own as well. He suspected he was about to get a crash course on his family and for the first time he was actually looking forward to it.

 

~^~^~^~

 

" _Just when I think I've learned the way to live, life changes." Hugh Prather, author of many a book on how to live one's life better, gave us that cheerful ditty, and it seemed to impact me all too often. It seemed every time my life settled into some vague form of normalcy Murphy would step in and kick me in the ass._

_So why the hell should I have been surprised when it happened again?_

"Alyx, you home?" He had no clue if she was or not, but had no intention of going to work unless necessary. He'd taken a personal day to drive up to see Madeline and blown pretty much all of it, and since Hobbes hadn't called with a situation that needed him had simply gone home figuring the best time to make amends with Alyx would be sooner rather than later.

Even with the furniture from Cold Springs the place echoed, feeling empty still, but neither of them wanted to simply fill the space with any old thing, so they left rooms barren for the time being, waiting for inspiration to come along. They had time, and the money to buy what they liked when they liked. No need to rush it. He had hoped she would be home resting, but after checking the downstairs bedroom she'd been using and her geek-cave, he headed for the pool area, the only other place she might be since he did not smell any food cooking.

"Alyx?" he called out as he opened the french doors and stepped outside, pausing for a moment to once again admire the view they had gotten along with the house.

"I believe she is still at the Agency," a strange voice said from the shadows off to Darien's left.

Once upon a time Darien would have froze, possibly literally, the surge of adrenaline causing the Quicksilver to come whether he wanted it to or not, but he'd learned to control it better than even Kevin could have expected, overriding his body's fight or flight reaction to a degree. He reacted by taking a defensive posture and shifting, intending to get to the wet bar as efficiently as possible and the gun he knew Alyx had stashed there.

Hell, she'd stashed them all over the house, along with a variety of other weapons should anything untoward occur. Your average thief would never get on the property thanks to the security system she had set up, so whomever had made it to the house, the secure pool area no less, had to be anything but average.

"If I wanted you dead you would be," the stranger stated, stepping out of the deep shadows and into the late afternoon sunshine.

Darien didn't change his course one whit, his hand on the gun, though not out in view before actually focusing on the intruder. Eyes on the unexpected guest he responded without conscious thought. "Damn it, Dad, you trying to get shot?"

Mason shrugged. "Granted the invite was tentative at best, but I doubt I could have gotten this far if she didn't want me to."

This time Darien did freeze in place as realization struck with the force of a lightning bolt, the adrenaline rush one he could in no way control and didn't even bother to try, the Quicksilver coating him and turning his vision grayscale shockingly quickly. He kept enough sense to hold onto the gun, and to make it disappear as well. Just because dear ol' Dad had made a surprise appearance didn't mean he'd come in peace. The man had been trained to kill after all.

"Or you could just be that good," Darien argued, stepping sideways as he spoke, forcing his father to track him by sound only.

Mason chuckled softly. "Oh, I am that good, but your girl is better." He leaned against one of the columns and took off the baseball cap he wore. "I take it she told you."

"Yeah, about a week ago." Pretty certain there was no real danger he tucked the gun into the back of his pants and convinced the Quicksilver to fall away. He remained wary, not trusting… Not trusting, period. The man had had six months to come forward and waited until a week after the deadline had come and gone. Not likely he'd simply forgotten the date. No, he had never planned on coming forward, which begged the question exactly why he was here now, and quite literally on Darien's doorstep. A doorstep that hadn't even been on the horizon when Dad had last been around. "She doesn't bluff."

"No, I don't imagine she does."

"So, since you never planned on telling me, why are you here?"

"I need your help," Mason stated, tone so bland you'd think they were discussing the rarely changing Southern California weather.

Darien felt like he needed a stiff drink and decided what the hell. He walked back over to the bar, chose a bottle at random, opened it and poured some into a glass. After downing a fair portion he waved the glass at his father. "You need help? You walked out on us. You left us with nothing. You couldn't even be bothered to come back when mom died and now… now you want my help?"

"Yes, I do. And it should mean something that I came to you first."

"Yeah, maybe it should, but it also kinda smacks of desperation. Who else can you turn to that won't try to drag you right back into the biz?"

"Christ, when did you get so cynical?" Mason groused, setting his hat down on the bar and making it clear he wasn't going anywhere in the near future. He waved at the glass in Darien's hand. "Got one of those for me?"

For an instant Darien wanted to say no, to tell his old man to go to hell, instead he nodded. Hadn't he just spent the afternoon trying to learn more about the man, the virtual stranger that his father was? Be stupid to send him away now that he had made himself known. Of course, it didn't mean he'd be willing to answer any of the thousands of questions Darien had, but it was a start that he was here. He pulled out another glass, poured a generous amount of the - he glanced at the label on the bottle - scotch as it turned out into the tumbler then pushed it to the edge of the bar.

His dad took up position across from him, picked up the glass, swirling about the deep amber liquid before tossing it back. "Damn. Come up in the world haven't you?"

"Why would you say that?" Darien asked as he poured more for both of them. At the very least he was going to require the lubrication to get through this. Though he would need to take care with how much as that anger simmered just below the surface and letting it out would not get him the answers he wanted.

"Prison, to a tiny studio, to," Mason tipped his head towards the house, "here."

Darien's eyes narrowed. "So, you have been paying attention… sort of." Alyx had told him that his father had been following his life, watching from a distance, but she'd gone into no details about how much the man might actually know.

"I'm certain Miss Silver explained my reason for keeping my distance."

"Yep, she did, which makes your sudden need for assistance a touch mystifying."

His dad blinked, then laughed softly. "How have you changed so much in the last few years?"

Darien shrugged. "Not as much as you might think." True enough. He was still a thief, had added a whole new set of skills to his repertoire, still tried to keep his toes wet even with the tag of narc hanging over him. He'd pulled just enough off-hours jobs to convince the locals that he was not a cop, least not when it concerned thieving.

"More than you realize," his father countered with.

"Like you would know," Darien sneered in response. He probably should be giving the man the benefit of the doubt, but couldn't seem to. It might just be a case far too little way too late. He rubbed the back of his neck. "What is so important you decided to show yourself now?"

"First, you might want to tell your girl to not shoot me." The glass Mason had raised had stopped halfway to his mouth, and he stared past Darien.

Darien turned about to see Alyx standing at the top of the porch stairs that led down to the pool area, gun drawn and aimed at his dad's head. "Baby, it's okay." He stepped to the side so that she could fully see who their… guest was.

She lowered the weapon, slightly. "Damn it, D. Did you forget I rigged panic buttons to all the hidden weapons?"

Darien felt sheepish, as he had indeed forgotten that fun fact. "Well, good thing the system contacts you and not the cops, huh?"

"Miss Silver, my apologies. I probably should have taken a more direct approach in contacting the two of you, but I did not want to lead certain parties to this location. I should have known you'd be prepared for unwanted guests and that you'd make certain my son was as well." He finished the drink and set the glass down on the bar. "You should sit, your leg is bleeding."

She sighed heavily and then tucked the gun into the shoulder holster she wore. "Fuck. Claire is going to read me the riot act… again."

Darien glared at his father for a second, the look saying in no uncertain terms that he best not move an inch,then went to Alyx, scooped her up in his arms and carried her back to the bar. Once settled on a chair with her bad leg propped up on another, he poured her a double and encouraged her to drink it. He could feel how wired she was thinking he'd been in serious trouble and rushing to his rescue.

"So, you finally decided to come out of the shadows," Alyx said once she'd downed drink number one. Darien immediately poured her another, certain she needed both the lubrication and the numbing effects the alcohol would eventually bring. Her phone trilled just then. "Crap. Need to let Bobby know everything is fine," she explained as she typed away on the tiny keyboard. " 'Fraid I went flying out of the Agency like a bat out of hell."

Once Bobby had been assured the coast was clear Darien said, "He claims he needs my help."

Alyx cocked her head to the side as she eyed Mason. "Who? 'Cause I made every effort to get you clear… unless you want back in, of course."

Mason chuckled softly. "It's not the USSA, you definitely scared them off, but there are others… And it's not necessarily for my main talent that they want me."

"But what else could they want you for?" Darien asked, pouring more scotch for each of them. He should probably think about making some sort of meal, or at least two of them were going to be utterly useless in the near future. He assumed his father's tolerance for alcohol was that of a mere mortal unlike Alyx who could drink both of them under the table - twice over. Easily

"Intel. Shit. I don't even want to imagine the secrets he… you know. How you got to some of your targets, your covers, your contacts; decades of information that could still be of serious value."

Mason nodded. "Exactly. And while I'm damn good at falling off the grid, they are apparently better. I've managed to keep ahead of them, but…"

"At some point they'll find the right leverage and you won't have much choice," Darien finished. "So why come here? Thought you were staying away to protect me?" He failed to prevent the sneer that entered his voice, not that he tried very hard, admittedly.

Mason's eyes narrowed, but he didn't miss a beat. "Because, as Miss Silver pointed out, you are an adult now and reasonably able to take care of yourself. Or so I thought." He set down his glass and glanced over at Alyx who shrugged.

"He didn't take the news about you too well. Much as I expected," she said in response to the obvious if unasked question. "Kinda dumped his worldview sideways."

"Not surprising," Mason stated, much to Darien's irritation. He wasn't fond of being talked about as if invisible, least not when he wasn't. "There's only so much I'll be able to tell you. Most of what I did is classified."

Darien snorted into his glass. "Tell her that." He gestured at Alyx. " 'Sides the job ain't what I'm really interested in."

"Why I left," Mason stated, to which Darien nodded in response. "It wasn't by choice, not really."

"Sure seemed that way."

"Dare," Alyx warned, her voice full of admonishment. "If you actually want answers stop being an asshole to the only person who can give them to you. You've spent your entire life trying to live up to his image, false as it was, maybe, now that you have the opportunity, you should take the time to learn  _who_   _he_   _is_." She downed the rest of her drink then slid carefully off the barstool, all her weight on her right leg at first. "I'm going to get some food started." She turned to Mason. "You are staying here, no argument. It'll be the safest place for now."

He raised his hands in surrender. "Wouldn't have it any other way. Let me know if I can help with dinner."

She nodded curtly then hobbled off, looking like she shouldn't even be on her feet.

Once Alyx was out of obvious earshot Mason said, "Did she leave any marks?"

Darien wanted to be angry - at her, at him, hell at the world, but instead sighed. "Nothing she won't fix later and I gotta admit I deserved it."

Mason shook his head. "You have every right to be angry with me. I did leave, but at the time it was the only choice that made sense. I was a soldier who turned out to be good at killing people from a distance. About the only thing I've ever been good at in my life. Government asked me if I wanted to keep doing it once I finished my tour. I decided what the hell? I needed a job anyway." He sat down, sighing softly. "Met your mother while stationed out here for my training. Fell in love, got married."

"Had a couple kids." The bitterness heavy in his voice. "When did they figure out you were an idiot?"

"Now that would be an accurate description." Mason chuckled softly. "My handler at the time went ballistic when he found out. I tried to keep work and family separate…" He trailed off, not needing to state the obvious. "When the higher ups found out they refused to allow me to tell your mom the truth and came up with the whole thief cover, which crashed and burned quickly."

"But why leave us high and dry?" All Darien wanted was to understand, but nothing his father was telling him did that.

"I didn't. There's a bank account that I still funnel money to. Your mother refused to touch it."

Darien went breathlessly still for a long moment as he processed that information. His father had actually attempted to do  _something_  for them after he had vanished, and he'd never known about it. "Because she thought you stole it," Darien stated, the truth obvious based on the little he actually knew about the whole mess.

"Precisely. Though if she had found out what I had been really doing…" He sighed, shaking his head. "I never wanted to hurt you, any of you, but it seemed better to stay away. No one could convince her to touch the money, even for you kids, which I am very sorry for." He suddenly looked old, ancient, as if he had lived a hard life and knew it would not get any better in the future. "I can't go back and change any of the choices I made. I can only say that at the time they were the best ones out of all of those I had. Miss Silver stays away from her family and you don't hate her for it."

Darien should have known his dad would bring that up and, in truth he wasn't wrong, but he also wasn't really right. "Yeah, but I'm not one of her kids. She's fully aware, especially now, that they might very well hate her for doing what she could to give them normal lives. She doesn't like it, but she knows it's the best chance they have, and she's involved as much as she dares to be." He didn't feel it was his place to explain her decisions, but at the same time he knew part of his job was to support and defend her when needed. "There are extenuating circumstances as well. She and her kids are… special. She spends a fair third of her time keeping them safe even if they never will know about it."

"How deep is the black ops agency that is after her?"

Darien blinked, his father's knowledge catching him off guard. She'd mentioned that dad had done his homework on her, she just hadn't given him a hint as to how much he had learned. "Uh, very. We haven't identified them yet even though her husband worked for them."

"I take it all of her children inherited her talents?"

Holy shit. Mason Fawkes might be out of the game, but clearly still played it expertly to know Alyx was anything beyond one hell of a spy for the pissant Agency. "That is classified so deep even god isn't supposed to know about it. How the hell do you?"

"I still have connections. My forte might have been as a sniper, but that's not all I can do."

That answer didn't up Darien's confidence much, because it meant someone was talking out of school and that put Alyx and more importantly her children in danger. "Dad, this is important-"

"And needless," Alyx interrupted as she stepped back outside, arms laden with food in need of cooking. "Fire up the grill, you're burning chicken tonight."

Darien eyed his father warily then moved to relive Alyx of the tray, setting it on the tile counter next to the grill. Tonight they'd be using the gas half as he didn't want to take the time to light up the smoker. Once lit and the chicken sizzling he asked, "What do you mean needless?"

"Your father is playing you. I gave him a small taste of what I can do when we last met, he simply made some assumptions based on that data."

Darien turned to his dad who shrugged. "She's very good."

Alyx patted Darien on the shoulder. "And Dare was simply defending me. Which I do appreciate." Then she moved over to the nearby table, settling in a chair with a groan. "Guess it's a good thing I'm stuck driving a desk, huh?"

Darien wasn't quite sure how to respond to that comment. "You being hurt is  _never_  a good thing, sweets. But why good now?"

"Because it means she's here to help and not off on another loan job for the Agency," Mason answered, which, now that it had been stated aloud, was obvious and correct.

"Trust me, her still being hurt is very much not a good thing," Darien pointed out getting a wan smile from Alyx. She liked being on the sidelines no more than he did, but if it meant she was home for a while he'd take it. He adjusted the temperature and closed the lid. The chicken would require a fair thirty minutes to cook properly, which gave them time to sort out a few more things. "You got sides going?"

Alyx nodded. "Threw together a quinoa salad, and will steam some asparagus. If that works for you more manly types."

"I may be a meat and potatoes kind of man, but I've never turned down a meal," Mason answered, "especially a home cooked one. You could have thrown me out."

She shook her head. "No, we couldn't, you're family."

Darien felt his jaw clench tight enough to make his molars pop.

"D, you have a different opinion on the matter?"

_Shit_. He should know better, but it wasn't like she needed to do more than read his body language to be certain where his thoughts had gone.

"You don't need to answer that, son. I know I have to earn my way back into your life." Mason didn't sound upset about that, just far too matter of fact for Darien's taste.

"You planning on sticking around then? Not gonna go back into hiding once we solve this little problem of yours?" Darien sneered.

"I guess that'll depend on  _how_  we solve my little problem," Mason said, not even flinching at the clear disdain in Darien's voice. He fully expected his father to turn tail and run once he was in the clear. "I would prefer to not have to walk out of your life again, but I can't make any promises. Not now."

"Typical."

"Seriously?" Alyx growled, both men turning to her. "Are you really going to force me to play mediator?" She stood up, back stiff, irritation visible in her very posture. "Darien, how many times have I had to go underground for the job or to protect the people I care about? You do not get to take the moral high ground on that."

Darien frowned, her anger coming through loud and clear. And, damn it all, she was right. He should understand better than anyone what the job could require. They had killed her off twice in an effort to protect her, had erased as much of her former existence as they possibly could to prevent anyone from learning who she had been prior to the Agency. She spent hours checking databases and feeds to make certain that when info on her did pop up it got scrubbed as quickly as possible.

When he didn't respond she did, "So what do we deal with first, family issues or getting you off the grid?"

"Good question. I'm certain Darien would prefer I deal with family first, but-"

"But the longer we take to deal with those after you the more likely it is they'll find you, and since you came here, they would find me and Alyx. Of course, that might have been your plan all along; get them off your tail by throwing them a far sweeter prize." His father shook his head, his gaze heavy and hard with the accusation thrown at him. "So, I'm going play the odds that you came because we can help, that you wanted  _my_  help, and not because you were so desperate that you felt you had nowhere else to go."

Mason turned to Alyx. "How angry will he be when I say I came for  _your_  help?"

For an instant Darien felt decidedly put upon, until it dawned on him that his dad had made the right call. He might have some skills, but nothing like Alyx, especially when it came to anything tech. Darien had learned quite a bit, but Alyx still outshone everyone, and if they had to track down who was after his dad, she was the best choice. "Well, it would be her or the NSA, and I think she's better."

"Plus, the NSA would probably love to get their hands on you," Alyx added, obviously hoping to lighten the mood.

"And not let go," Mason confirmed. "Darien, the two of you are a package deal, I figured that out the last time I was here. She never gave up on you and there is no way I would even try to separate you. I suspect you bring out the best in each other and your best is what we're going to need."

"I will still need a place to start," Alyx commented. "Do you have any specifics, even if just a picture of someone who has been following you?"

"I do. The advantage of cloud storage when you have to use burner phones." Mason managed a wry smile. "I may be old, but I've kept up with the times. I'll give you everything I have."

"Perfect, but after dinner. I'm hungry."

Mason chuckled. "Of course." He turned to Darien. "Thank you. I want you to know that I don't expect anything more than your help."

Darien shook his head. "Dad… I'm gonna be as asshole. It's been too long for me to just let it go, but… but I'm gonna try, okay?"

Mason nodded. "I can't ask for more. Now flip the chicken before it burns."

Darien rolled his eyes, but still moved to do so as even he could smell that it was time to check on dinner.

 


	3. Chapter 3

"Crap, is there anyone who isn't after him?"

"Alyx, you should go to bed," Darien said as he poked his head into her office. He'd gotten up for a drink, assuming she'd crashed in the downstairs guest room she'd taken over like she had been since they'd gotten back from up north. His dad was at the other end of the house in another guest room, that had the bedroom set from Cold Springs in it, probably sound asleep. He seemed to feel relatively secure and confident that Alyx's system would keep intruders at bay, at least long enough to allow them to get to weapons. She'd modified the system to account for their guest and armed it. No one would get in that wasn't permitted, and that list was very short. Most, including Hobbes and Claire, would need to be buzzed in from the gate just to get on the property, which, while inconvenient, both agreed to be the right choice. Better for a friend to be slightly put out than an enemy have access.

"Not tired," she muttered, tapping a few more keys.

He walked over to her, setting a hand on her shoulder. "Which might be part of the reason you're not healing. Isn't Claire worried, 'cause I sure am."

She tipped her head to look up at him. "I don't have time to hibernate and heal right now."

He sighed softly. "And you if don't take care of yourself, you'll be of no use to any of us, my dad included."

She muttered imprecations under her breath. "Do you really think I want to be up forty hours straight? Do you really think I would be doing this if I didn't have to? You have no idea what is going on."

He cupped her chin with one hand. "You're right I don't. Is it work or personal?" They'd agreed secrets for work could and would stay secrets when necessary, but personal… that was a different story entirely.

"And if I said both?"

"Well, that would explain why you're all twisted up in knots." She'd hid it well, but it still had impinged on his awareness. Something was wrong, he simply remained unsure as to what.

"There's so much I can't tell you that I chose to tell you nothing," she admitted, closing the laptop, suddenly deciding to be done for the night.

"Which is doing you a whole lot of good. How bad did this last job go?"

"It went fine. I accomplished the goal; just got hurt in the process, but better me than-"

"Me."

Darien's head whipped about to see his father standing in the doorway, a concerned look on his face. "She got shot over you?"

"I didn't know," Mason stated, "and if I had I would never had let her. I can handle this."

Darien snorted. "Clearly not if she took a bullet for you."

"Dare, he had no idea I was there." She looked over at Mason. "Hell, I didn't know he was the target until almost too late." She leaned back in the chair and rubbed her face in her hands, looking exhausted. "I was supposed to make certain you were… eliminated. I got the shooter to alter his target at the last possible moment."

"And yet you still welcomed me. Why?" Mason seemed confused by this, and Darien could understand why since his dad didn't really know her or the lengths she'd go through to protect those she deemed worthy.

"Wait. He was your target? The 'Fish sent you to kill my father?" Not what he wanted to even consider, but not overly surprising in the grand scheme of things.

"No. It was a loan job and I am  _not_  saying for whom. That would be the work part. Your dad made it very personal."

"Which is why you left breadcrumbs to come here." He wagged a finger at her. "You are very sneaky."

"I but try my poor best," she simpered. "Let's just say there are factions who would rather that the information you have in your head never see the light of day. And their solution is of the permanent type."

"They want me dead. Can't say I'm surprised." Mason shrugged. "It's what I would do."

"Me too, " Alyx agreed, earning a gasp from Darien. "What? It makes the most sense;" she waved at Mason, "he can't tell what he knows if he's dead. And he's, shall we say, a bit of an embarrassment for the USSA."

"Why is that?" Darien asked, feeling suddenly exhausted. This was not a conversation he had ever expected to have. Then again he hadn't expected to see his father ever again, so feeling a tad put out was probably within the realm of normal.

"I said no."

"Plus, they burned him, thinking he'd gone rogue, only to discover his handler was the one who had gone over to the dark side."

That earned a surprised snicker from the elder Fawkes and a look of surprise from the younger. "What? I'm still human. Though one, two, and three were horrible." He winked at Alyx who laughed softly. "Do you have a plan to solve my little problem?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. Some options, but I need to do some digging first. Figure out how high the kill order goes so I know who I'm going to be pissing off."

"Then go get some sleep. Tomorrow is another day and you… well, to be frank, you look like shit."

"Glad you were willing to fall on that particular sword," Darien said sotto voce, earning a slight grin from his father.

"LIke you haven't been broadcasting it for days." She rubbed her forehead, then pushed the chair back, getting to her feet with an audible groan. Darien didn't hesitate, walked around the desk and scooped her up in his arms. She didn't fight him one bit and actually curled up against him, resting her forehead against the side of his neck. "I did not know the job was a hit until the last possible moment, else I would have warned you," she said to Mason. "I was simply the spotter."

"Who was the shooter?"

"Yakiro."

Mason nodded slowly. "He's good. Rarely misses and uses… Shit, no wonder you are still so bad off."

Alyx twitched and sighed heavily. Darien got a wash of irritation from her. "What are you hiding from me now?"

Mason gave her an apologetic look, making it obvious he realized he'd screwed the pooch on this one. "His weapon of choice has been highly modified, as have the rounds he uses. They can do up to ten times the damage of an equivalent standard round." He cocked his head to the side. "How are you even walking? It should have shattered your femur."

"You are assuming it didn't," Alyx groused. "Look, a side effect of my… abilities is to heal faster than normal. That said, the damn bullet left bits behind and it'll do more harm to go in and remove them than to just let my body do the job itself. Trouble is it's taking longer than expected."

"Which is why you keep bleeding, the original wound won't heal till all the shattered bits are gone," Darien summed up, not thrilled with the reason she was still in pain. "But did you break your leg?"

She shook her head. "No. I had some control of the damage it did, just not enough." She lifted her head to look straight at Mason. "Yakiro is  _very_ good. He was taking a head shot at you."

Darien could see that his father was thinking hard, trying to figure out when the hit had occurred and how she had managed to turn a head shot at person A into a leg shot on person B. "Calgary?" he asked and she nodded. "Through the building? Christ, that took timing on your part. Does he know he hit you?"

"No. He thinks he just missed." She shrugged. "If you hadn't turned your head when you did he wouldn't have."

" 'Cause once he fires he doesn't watch. His ego makes him certain he'll hit his target. He will hate you if he finds out, this is his first miss in years."

"Is there some sort of sniper club out there and you all compete to see who's the best?" Darien questioned, his tone only slightly hysterical he hoped. This was nuts. Completely nuts. Strange enough to learn his father was a sniper, a good one, but another thing entirely to hear him discussing it as if it were a normal part of every day. For some it might be; he and Alyx had been lucky that they'd never really had to worry about such things. Well, maybe only him, as this adventure made it clear Alyx had at the very least assisted at such things.

"Not exactly." Mason leaned back against the wall, one hand coming up to rub the back of his neck. "I want to know how he… how  _they_  knew I was there."

"I assume you took all the usual precautions?" Alyx asked, getting a nod in response. "Cameras maybe?"

Darien asked, what to him had to be an obvious question, "Who did you meet in Calgary?"

The look on his father's face made Darien want to laugh. "What makes you think I went there to meet anyone?"

"Because if you made no mistakes, someone else must have. So who did you meet?"

"He's a natural, isn't he?"

"So, I've been told," Alyx confirmed. "We'll check on your contact tomorrow."

"Hell, if they put pressure on her…"

Darien's eyebrows rose at that. Hopefully, his father hadn't gotten shot at over a tryst.

"D, he's not dead and it's none of your business."

Mason laughed. "She's an ex-spy and a contact I made years ago. Though she does have grandchildren."

"And everyone will break with the right pressure. Did she know you were going to be in that park?" Alyx asked.

"No, no one knew. I decided to go to that park maybe fifteen minutes earlier. The area has very few cameras, and I avoided all of them."

"Maybe your friendly eye in the sky tracked you," Darien said in full sarcastic mode.

"Satellites? Not likely. You can't do facial rec-" His dad's words cut off dead the same moment Alyx stiffened in Darien's arms. "Or can you?"

"Alyx, now would be a good time to share with the class."

"If you two think the only way to find someone is via facial recognition then you'd be nuts. And, yes, satellites can do it - multiple ways."

"And you know this how exactly?" Darien had to ask even if he really didn't want to know the answer.

"How do you think? I helped modify the existing algorithm. Hell, it's more accurate than the facial rec the NSA uses."

For an instant Darien was sorely tempted to drop her and just walk away in disgust. And Alyx couldn't have missed it if she tried.

"Put me down."

"Son, none of this is her fault."

"I know that," Darien snapped.

"Damn it. Put me down now," she snarled, struggling in his hold almost to the point of causing him to drop her, which might very well have been her intent. She couldn't help but feel what he did, and there were times he hated that fact. The rest of the time he didn't want to be without it… live without it. He loved her, but there were times he didn't care for what she was capable of.

"No," he told her in a soft voice, then turned his face bury it in her hair. "Work is work, right?"

"Apparently not," she muttered, but stopped trying to wiggle her way out of his arms.

"I take it there is something beyond the usual couple issues going on here?" Mason asked overly-politely.

Alyx snorted. "Usual couple issues." She rubbed her forehead. "I has headache."

"How about we explain in the morning, so's I can get this one to bed?" Darien suggested hoping his father would drop it for the moment. Alyx was upset and exhausted and needed to sleep for days, but would be forced to settle for a few hours, but with him for the first time in over a week. That would hopefully make a difference in her state of mind and body come tomorrow.

"Son, just remember that when the time came she chose to save my life, hell, she took a bullet for me. That's what matters."

Darien hung his head. "Yeah, I know, but we haven't quite figured out how to handle when work overlaps the personal. Least on her outside jobs."

"But we will," she said in all confidence. "Get some sleep, Mason, tomorrow is going to be an… interesting day."

He nodded slowly. "Good night," he said as he turned and left them alone.

"I just keep fucking this whole thing up," Darien muttered as he shifted her slightly in his hold. She weighed nothing no matter how solid she felt. She'd lost too much weight this time around and had done nothing to compensate for that. Her powers may have been kicked up to the nth degree, but on this occasion, though he did not understand why, they weren't compensating, weren't pulling in more energy to heal her and keep her at that default perfect weight and build.

And he just kept piling more shit on her instead of doing what he could to help.

"Yeah, you do," she agreed, still tense.

"Well, for tonight anyway, I'm done." He walked out the room, heading for the stairs, fully intending to take her to their room and their bed. "You need to sleep."

"Then take me to my bedroom," she suggested.

"Our bedroom. You… we are not sleeping in separate rooms tonight. You will heal faster if you're with me and you know it." She always had before, no reason for it to not be true now.

"I'll bleed all over the sheets."

"So, we'll buy new sheets," he told her, not about to let her talk her way out of this. He turned at the top of the stairs, heading to the left where the huge master suite was located. "We'll get you all propped up and comfy and you will do nothing but sleep for the next several hours. And come morning I'm making breakfast and if you're good I'll even deliver."

"Dare, you don't have to do all this. I'm a big girl and can manage all on my own."

"I am well aware, but the point is you don't have to. We're partners, remember?" He stopped next to their bed. "Let me help, please?"

"Do you want to help? Or do you just want the target of your anger closer to hand?" The hard bite to her words well deserved.

He gently set her down, making certain she was steady before releasing her. He figured she might want to shower and change before crawling into bed. "I… this isn't easy for me and is forcing me to take a hard look at my life and I can't help but wonder what it might of been like if my dad had stuck around, or even just come back after mom died. My… our lives would have been so different and maybe… just maybe Kevin would still be alive."

"I get that. Really, I do. You think I haven't spent my time what iffing about Jess… About you." She limped away. "Why blame me for all of this?"

He'd actually had plenty of time to think about that very question and had come to the only logical conclusion. "Because it was easier than blaming myself," he told her. "I can't even blame him, my dad. I could have gone looking for him, could have tried to find the truth, but I just toed the party line. Following in my father's footsteps." He ducked his head, tanned foot pale against the dark wood of the floor. "I wanted to be a thief like him and instead ended up being a spy… just like him."

"Not just like him. You can't shoot for shit."

Darien snorted. "Can't argue with that. I'm not handling this too well am I?"

"Nope." Her hand came to rest on his back, he hadn't even heard her move. "Just don't block me out and we'll get through this. It's not like I expected him to show up on our doorstep. I figured he'd just disappear like always." He turned his head in time to see her smile wanly. "He is a ghost after all."

Darien turned about and set his hands on her shoulders. "Maybe he doesn't want to hide any more."

"Maybe," she agreed. "We may need help with this."

"What kind of help?" He wasn't certain he would trust anyone with knowledge about his dad.

"Bobby."

Darien had to think about that for a long moment before answering. "Why Bobby? Why not the Official?"

"Because, depending on what kind of order is out on Mason, the Official might have no choice but to report that he's here, Bobby not so much. And he has decades of contacts that can get us into places that I might not even think of. I'm not saying today, but…"

"Yeah, he'd be good back up. Provided it doesn't put him in a bind." He rubbed his face with one hand, the other curling around the back of her neck. "Christ what are we going to do with him tomorrow?"

"Drug him and tie him to the bed?" she suggested. "I think we can convince him to stay here while we play good soldiers and go into work. I'll only be there a couple of hours unless Drake needs help hacking into something, which is rare these days. Claire just wanted to give me another exam and have me look over some notes on the new toxin inhibitor. After that I'm free to make some discreet inquiries into who ordered the hit on Mason and why."

"Me and Bobby have paperwork on the last case to file, after that it'll depend what the 'Fish has for us. Think you can keep Dad alive for the day?"

"More likely the other way around," she said causing him to frown. "D, my security is good, but even I can't prevent an airstrike." When his eyes went wide she added, "Kidding. Jeez, lighten up or neither of us will be able to relax enough to sleep."

Darien blew out the breath he'd been holding. "You are mean, you know that?"

She just grinned up at him.

He yawned, wanting to talk more, but the siren's call of sleep was gaining strength. "Need help?"

She nodded. "Just promise you won't freak when we change the bandages."

"No more than necessary, how's that."

"Good enough." She patted his cheek then hobbled off to the bathroom where the first aid supplies lived.

This was probably going to be uncomfortable for both of them, but together they would get through it just fine.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

"So, Fawkes, how did things go yesterday?"

Darien twitched, wondering how the hell Hobbes knew that his Dad had made a surprise appearance until Darien remembered that he'd told his partner where he had been headed on his personal day. "Uh, fine. Got some of the blanks filled in, revealed a whole bunch more. It was good to see her."

"Gonna go hang out on Thanksgiving?"

Darien actually brightened at that idea. "Be a good time to introduce Alyx. Think we can con the 'Fish into keeping her in town and giving us the day off?"

"With the right persuasion, anything is possible." Hobbes leaned back in the chair, the paperwork done, finally. There had been nothing new today so they would be following up on several open, but stalled cases. It was looking to be a stakeout kind of afternoon. "How are you and the kid?"

Darien shrugged. "We're okay. Still working through some issues. She's not healing like she should."

"Yeah, well, when you get shot by Yakiro still being alive is a major accomplishment."

Darien went stock still for several minutes wondering if he dared ask Bobby how he had come by that information or just assume Alyx had told him even though she had agreed to hold off until necessary. And given she hadn't had time to do those detailed searches yet he had no reason to think she'd go to Bobby blind. "How… how do you know that?" Darien whispered hoarsely.

"Fawkes," Hobbes said with a laugh, "I'm a spy. I hear things. When Yakiro misses a shot everyone knows about it. The real question is why he hit the kid and not his target, but I have the feeling you have the answers."

"Shit, Bobby, I just found out the details yesterday, mostly 'cause they ended up on my doorstep." Darien got to his feet and began to pace their office, one hand trying to rub a hole through his forehead as he debated how much would be safe to say while within the environs of the Agency.

"And what  _exactly_  ended up on your doorstep," Bobby asked voice full of concern.

"A ghost."

Hobbes blinked as he endeavored to process the meaning of those two words, when he did he sucked in a shocked breath. "Oh hell, Fawkes. And this ghost was the target?"

"Yes." Darien lowered his voice. "Alyx caught that bullet to save him."

Hobbes sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I was afraid it was something like that. What's the plan?"

"Vague at best. Alyx is looking into who ordered the hit and who else might be after him. He's been running since he left here." Darien probably looked as dour as he felt. Would his family ever catch a break?

"And he came to you for help?"

Darien laughed bitterly. "Alyx, but, as he pointed out, we are a package deal."

"Crap," Hobbes muttered. "And you get some quality bonding time with daddy-dearest." He tapped his fingers on the desk. "You got some place you can stash him for a day while we plan?"

"Plan what?" Darien asked in confusion.

"How to keep your father alive. I can guarantee they are coming here and they will find him. Alyx can't protect him twenty-four seven. And I'm pretty sure he would not want her to take another bullet for him." Hobbes didn't pull his punches, and wasn't wrong. Mason Fawkes was family and she would defend family with every fiber of her being, even if it meant she lost her life in the process. He really hoped it wouldn't come to that, but feared it just might.

"Uh, maybe. Need to figure out how to do it so's they think he's still here though."

"Simple, we bring him into the Agency."

Both men spun around to see Alyx standing in the doorway. A funky new brace adorning her left leg.

"Thought you said we couldn't trust the Official?" Darien questioned.

"We can't. Never said we were gonna tell him."

"A fake out. That could work," Hobbes said nodding his head. "Walk him in the front door all obvious-like and sneak him right out the back. I assume he knows about your talent?" he asked of Darien.

Darien ducked his head. "Well if he didn't before yesterday he does now."

Hobbes shook his head in clear dismay.

"What? A stranger shows up not just at my house, but on my patio. I grabbed a gun and Quicksilvered." Only a slight lie, but no way would he admit that realizing said stranger was his dad had caused the sudden invisibility as opposed to fear of his life.

Hobbes chuckled. "Took you long enough, but you're finally learning."

Darien rolled his eyes. Given the security at his house, unwelcome guests should not be possible. His dad continued to be that exception to break all the rules.

"He's been keeping an eye on you and while he may not have all the details, knows pretty much everything that happened to you," she told him, her voice soft, unable to meet his eyes.

Shit, had he really been that touchy on the subject? She looked like she wanted to cower, which meant he'd been being a total dick on the level of her husband. "Okay. That makes it easier, I guess. So, when? Tonight?"

"Tomorrow. I have stuff to set up first."

"Like what, kid?" Hobbes was always on the ball.

"Well, a car for one. He's going to need some way to drive away from here. We have to stay to make it look legit." She lifted her head to look at Darien. "You thinking stash him at your Grams for a day or two?"

Darien nodded. "It's off the beaten path and she'd probably like to see her son while he's in town."

"Doesn't solve the real problem, though," Hobbes stated.

"Which is?" Darien chose to bite on that one suspecting Alyx already knew the answer.

"How to get  _them_  off his back," Alyx told him. "Bringing him in might only make them want to kill him all the more. We have to convince them he is out of the game entirely, and there are only so many ways to pull that off."

Darien felt the blood drain out of his face. "He's gonna have to run, ain't he." He turned away with a snarl of frustration. "I just got him back."

Hobbes got to his feet and walked over towards his partner. "How did you think this was gonna end, Fawkes? Hell, how many times have we killed off the kid in an effort to throw hunters off her trail. We're just damn lucky she's so dangerous that at this point they're more afraid of her than their bosses."

"What are our options? Real ones," Darien asked. He tried not to cringe, suspecting none of the answers would be ones he liked.

"Witness protection," Alyx offered.

"Witless protection more like," Hobbes muttered. "Not a chance. Next."

"Well, he runs on his own or with a new identity."

"Better," Hobbes agreed, "but if they even suspect that's all he did he'll be running forever and I'm betting Fawkes would like the opportunity to hook up with his pa now and then."

"What else is there?" Darien asked, not sure what else there could possibly be.

"We let them kill him," she said, dead serious and freaking Darien out more than a little.

"No," he stated, voice faint. "He didn't go through all this just to-"

"Fawkes, calm down. She doesn't mean for real. Like when we killed her," Hobbes explained, hooking a thumb at her. "I like that idea. You got an exit plan for him?"

"Not yet, but I will. He'll be set up in style, promise," she said to Darien who still felt more than a touch taken aback.

"How are you going to do that, kid?"

"Bobby," she laughed, then changed into her best mob muscle voice, "I know a guy who's an expert at creating new personas."

Hobbes' face scrunched up as he tried to figure out who she meant. Darien took no time at all. "Jarod."

She nodded. "The covers will be solid and he'll be free to move about the cabin."

Darien looked from one partner to the other. "Can we do this?"

"Do we have a choice?" Alyx returned.

"No, I guess not." He didn't like it, but there did not seem to be a better option. "You heading home?"

"Yep. On Keepers orders, no less. She is less than happy with my current x-rays." Darien opened his mouth only to be shushed by a shake of her head. "Later. I'll give our guest a heads up as to the plan and then start working on the details. "Dinner at seven, I expect both of you there unless work bites you on the ass, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Hobbes responded complete with mock salute.

"We'll be there. Make it a good plan, okay?" Darien requested wishing that there could be another option.

She nodded. "Best that I can, promise." Then turned and limped away.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

Alyx stood outside on the sidewalk as they pulled up in the van, waiting for them as planned. Just like the delivery of any other high profile target, except for the decided lack of generic suits nearby. They'd had to keep those in the know to a minimum to prevent the Official from catching wind of it.

Darien turned about in his seat to meet the calm gaze of his father. "You sure about this? We can still go at this another way."

"Son… Do you trust her? Do you trust Alyx?"

"With my life," Darien answered without even thinking about it.

"Then trust her with mine."

Hobbes twitched, but wisely kept his mouth shut.

Darien, however, failed utterly at being convinced. He'd just gotten his dad back, had a million and one question to ask him and was instead going help him run away and start over without him.

"Son, if this doesn't work I'm dead and you won't have any chance with me anyway, so we might as well give it a try," Mason said, sounding utterly bored with the whole thing.

Hobbes snorted. "He's got you there, partner."

Darien sighed. Hating when the entire universe decided to conspire against him. "And if it does work?"

Mason shrugged. "You've made a life for yourself here, you don't need your father's approval for anything you do."

"Doesn't mean I don't want it," Darien muttered, kind of hating himself for feeling the need for his father's approval even though he was a grown adult. He'd barely remembered his father and yet had spent a fair portion of his life trying to live up to that image he had in his head of the man. An incorrect image as it turned out, but it didn't change the basic fact that he had missed his father and needed him to be there as he grew up… no matter how hard he had tried to deny it over the years. Yes, he understood why his father had stayed away, but it did nothing to erase the ache of loss or desperate need of approval buried deep in his gut.

"I know, son," Mason said softly.

"Fawkes, are we doing this or not?" Hobbes grouched, and he was right, this was not the time or place for a deep, meaningful conversation with dad.

"Yeah. Let's." He exited the van, playing the part by looking about to check for followers or watchers. Oh, they were there watching, waiting to see what they were doing, and they would spread the word that Forrester Perdue had been brought into the Agency.

Hobbes went around to the rear, doing his best paranoid and suspicious looks at everything. With a nod from him, Darien slid open the side door and waved for Mason to exit. Alyx swung open the building door waiting for them to enter so they could move onto the next step in this plan.

"You remember what to do?" Alyx asked as they walked down the grungy hallway.

Mason chuckled. "I do indeed."

She handed him the keys to the car he'd be using for this. "C'mon, lets get you in your ever so fancy disguise." She turned to Darien who wore a frown. "We'll meet you this evening at the rendezvous point. We'll bring dinner." She handed him a cell phone. "Hacked and untraceable. You should be able to use it anywhere in the world. I've set up an emergency supply bag that should cover most electronic contingencies."

"Where did you get that?" Hobbes asked, eyeing the piece of hardware with what looked like jealousy.

Darien snorted. "You really think she didn't just do it herself?

Alyx grinned. "Not this time. Did a barter job with a local outfit, their hacks are amazing, I just modded the encryption a wee bit." She turned to Mason. "I've programmed a selection of relevant numbers, including the best pizza joints in every major city."

Mason laughed. "And if I said I don't eat pizza?"

"Then I would have programmed what you do like," she told him, clearly confident she'd made the right choice. "C'mon, let's get you looking pretty."

She led them to one of the unused offices where she'd set up, as they turned a corner they damn near ran into Drake.

"Miss Silver, you may need to move faster than anticipated," Drake said as he fell into step beside her and trailed her into the room.

"Calls already?" He nodded. "Damn, they move fast." She waved for Mason to have a seat. "I need twenty minutes. Can you stall that long?"

He nodded. "I might even manage thirty, but don't waste any time, the Official has a meeting this morning that I was not able to reschedule. You do not want to be here when he arrives."

"We won't be… He won't be.  _We_  still have to pretend to work," Alyx assured him. "Now go run interference. I'll let you know when it's all clear."

"Works," Drake said as he scooted from the room.

"You let Drake in on this?" Hobbes questioned, echoing Darien's own thoughts on the matter.

She rolled her eyes. "We're in the building, it was let him in on it or have him find out and probably fuck things up. He doesn't know who he," she waved at Mason, "is, which gives him all the plausible deniability he needs."

"But if he's fielding calls…"

"D, trust me, Drake has his end handled," Alyx assured them, then turned back to Mason. "Makeover time."

Mason grinned. "Do your worst."

"Oh, she will," Darien informed him, smiling as well.

 


	4. Chapter 4

 

 

_Comedian Tyler Perry proved he could be serious now and then when he said, "Forgiveness is important in families, especially when there are so many secrets that need to be healed - for the most part, every family's got them."_

 

 

_No kidding._

~^~

 

The drive to Gram's house was roundabout this time, in a car Alyx had acquired for them, much like the one she arranged for his father. The sun was low on the horizon, long shadows from the orange trees stretching across the driveway and lawn. The ancient farmhouse glowed in the gloaming, making Darien's heart actually feel lighter. This would be the first time in a very long time he'd have even part of his family together in the same place, he only hoped Grams liked Alyx as much as his father seemed to. A'course he had no idea if his father liked  _her_  or just her skills.

They rolled up, the gravel crunching under the tires as the door swung open and Mason stepped out on to the porch. Alyx had her door open before the car had rolled to a complete stop. "Everything all right?" she asked in obvious concern.

"Yes. She insisted on cooking," Mason informed them.

"Guess I shouldn't be surprised," Darien stated as he climbed out. As promised they had brought dinner with them. Nothing fancy by normal standards as he figured Grams wouldn't be into Thai or Asian-Mexican fusion. So it was slow roasted chicken with assorted sides of the picnic variety. They'd also picked up a couple sixes of a locally brewed beer and more coffee beans. He wasn't too certain of the reception this time around since he'd basically just dropped his dad into Grams' lap without so much as a by your leave. "Grams is okay?"

Mason nodded, taking some of the bags from Alyx who grumbled about not being handicapped, which both men ignored. A cane had joined the brace and Claire had threatened a wheelchair if she didn't start taking care of herself, so Alyx carried nothing more than her bag of tricks. But, in general, that would be more than enough. She'd been buried in her office most of the day, doing what she did best and abusing her computer to find the information they needed.

"Do you ever rest?" Mason asked as she gimped her way up the few steps and across the porch.

"Rarely," Darien answered, holding the screen door open with his hip while they walked through. Alyx had changed a lot since meeting Jarod, most of which had not been under her control. Her sleep cycles had been screwy before and only gotten screwier. Her four to five hours had shortened to two or three a night, which meant that even when she was home he spent a lot of time alone in bed.

Sadly, there was no fix for her, and thanks to her recent adventure to The Centre the controls that had been in place were gone and she could do things that none of them had ever expected. She had been cautious exploring the extent of her abilities, always concerned that she would do more harm than good, but the power she wielded remained immense. She simply no longer suffered pain when she overdid it. Hell, they weren't certain she  _could_  overdo it any more. She'd become the energizer bunny of superpowers.

She had spent long hours working on this, working arrangements to find who was after his father and keep him safe, and to do that required her abilities and had contributed to her lack of sleep in recent days. Hobbes had stayed behind to keep an eye out on home base, he and Drake would be fielding any parties interested in the man brought into the Agency, though it had been confirmed that word had spread that it had indeed been Perdue, and  _that_  had a lot of people worried and probably wanting him even deader.

That was part of why they were meeting here, to assess the situation and make a decision on how to proceed.

Grams was suddenly in front of him, hands out for the bags in his. He resisted. "I got these," he assured her, heading for the kitchen where he found Alyx seated at the table, leg propped up on a stool. He set the bags on the counter and his dad began to unload them. The kitchen smelled of pot roast and made him actually salivate. It had been a long time since the crappy lunch he'd had. He wasn't even sure if Alyx had eaten at all today.

"You found yourself a real spitfire, didn't you?" Grams asked, though it took a moment for him to realize she was talking about Alyx.

"Well, I figured I needed someone who could handle you," Darien retorted with a smile, causing his Grams to give a bark of laughter.

"Oh, you think you're so smart." She gave his biceps a pinch then shooed him away. "Go sit with your girl while I finish up dinner."

"Grams, we brought dinner," Darien reminded even as he moved a chair right next to Alyx and settled into it. His dad handed him one of the beers.

"Which we will eat tomorrow for lunch. Thank you." She stuck a fork into the pot coming up with a chunk of potato. "Fifteen minutes. Mason, set the table, please."

"Yes, mom."

Darien smiled, he'd missed this in his life. The simple pleasures of a family meal. He turned to Alyx. "How are you doing?"

She shrugged. "Tired, truth be told." She looked up at Mason as he set a plate before her. "We need to have a discussion after dinner."

"As I expected. Are we secure for now?"

She nodded. "Yes, all the chatter says you're still within the loving bosom of the Agency."

"The vultures circling yet?" he asked as he grabbed a pair of beers, popped the tops efficiently, and handed one to her.

"Not yet." She downed a long swallow, sighing as she set it back on the table. "I will give you all the details later. How did the family reunion go?"

Mason glanced over at his mother. "It was… interesting."

"I almost shot him. This strange man appearing out of nowhere," Madeline explained. "Nothing for twenty years and then he shows up out of the blue. Of course, it's because he's in trouble."

"Mrs. Fawkes, I promise you it was for all the right reasons," Alyx said, her voice soft.

"Oh, I know that. Mason is a good man," She turned her bright gaze upon her son, "and I have no doubt he'll tell me everything when he is ready." Then she turned to Alyx. "And you may call me Madeline, young lady. Anyone who can tame this hellion," she pointed the wooden spoon at Darien, "has earned my respect and the right to call me by name."

"Tamed me," Darien groused. "She likes me 'cause I'm the bad boy."

Alyx leaned forward to ruffle his hair. "That too."

"You are so ruining my cred here," he grumbled, shoving her hand away and fixing his hair.

His dad chuckled and shook his head. "She's been good for you, Darien, and there is nothing wrong with that."

Darien glanced over at Alyx who was playing possum then ducked his head. "I know, but we don't have to announce it to the world. Thief is far more sexy than good guy."

Alyx pshawed. "Even when you were nothing but a thief you were a good guy, that's why you got caught, remember?"

"So, I didn't want a murder rap hanging over my head."

Mason snorted. "You could have gotten away clean. You chose to go back and do the right thing."

Darien's head snapped up and he stared at his father in stunned disbelief. "How could you possibly know that?"

Mason shrugged. "I have my ways," he replied enigmatically.

"Knew about it, but couldn't be bothered to help," Darien groused, wishing he could hold the disappointment back. How many times had he gotten into trouble that his father knew about and yet did nothing? How many times had he hoped that someone, anyone would step forward and show that they cared. Cared about him enough to try to intervene. Yeah, Kevin had stepped in when things had turned bleak and had saved him… in some ways, in others he'd simply forced his choices on his younger brother. Tried to get him to walk the straight and narrow by force and while it had worked, it most certainly hadn't been by choice.

"Dare…" Alyx's eyes widened, "Is that how you really feel?"

"This ain't about you, Alyx. I wasn't a kid anymore. He could have come forward at any time."

"Darien, you do not get to blame your father for your mistakes, those are all on you," Madeline stated, wagging the spoon in his direction now. "You want to be treated like a man, then start acting like one."

"Grams, you don't understand. He could have been there. Could have been in my life, but he chose not to. Could have been there when mom-" he choked to a stop, took a moment to get himself back under control. "Mom died and he did nothing for me and Kev. Nothing. Do I blame him for my choices? No. Do I think they might have been different if he'd been around? Yeah, I do. And knowing he's been there, behind the scenes doing nothing? I have every right to be mad about that."

Mason's look hardened. "Outside now. We have to clear the air."

"And if I don't give a flying-"

"Darien," Alyx barked, "have some respect for your Grams if no one else."

He twisted his head around to glare at her, but he modified his response. "And if I don't care."

"Do it anyway," Mason ordered. "You want to behave like a child then I will treat you as one."

Darien stubbornly didn't move, he had no interest in listening to anything his father had to say right now.

Alyx set a gentle hand on his arm. "Darien, you need to hear this."

His glare at her only deepened, but her look didn't change. Sympathy mixed with determination.  _*Dearheart, it's important.*_

He blinked, the emotions coming with her voice matching those on her face. "Yeah, okay." He stood, set a hand on Alyx's shoulder, wanting her by his side when his father imparted whatever surely to be horrible news he was about to share. She gave his hand a quick squeeze.

He followed his father out the back door and into the darkened yard, the only light available oozing out through the curtains covering the windows. He tipped his head up to see  _stars_ ; millions and millions of them, the deep velvet blue filled with tiny pinpoints of light. More than they ever got to see from within the confines of the city proper.

"So what did you want to tell me?"

"What if I said your mother's accident wasn't?"

Darien's heart skittered to a stunned halt before tripling its rate. "Was it?"

His father tucked his hands into his back pockets still walking slowly across the yard, heading for the ancient playset Darien vaguely remembered from his youth. "I wish I knew."

Darien ran his hands through his hair in frustration. "Do you know anything?"

"I know that I had been visiting your mother, seeing if maybe we could work things out."

Darien shook his head. "I don't remember that."

"Because we didn't want to tell you kids and get your hopes up if it didn't work out," Mason explained. "We'd been cautiously seeing each other for several months and we'd begun discussing me moving back in when-"

"When she died." Fuck. "Did your handler know what you were doing?"

"I don't know."

Darien paced away hand coming up to his forehead. "If they did… Are you saying they killed mom to keep you in the game?"

"I'm saying her death was very convenient. Too convenient. Driving on a road she knew like the back of her hand, no unusual weather conditions, no skid marks, no reason for her to have gone off the road." He leaned back against the swing set. "The investigation was slipshod at best."

"A cover up?"

His dad nodded. "That's what I was worried about."

"And you were afraid they'd go after me and Kev if you didn't fall back into the fold." It made perfect sense. Kill his wife and kill his reasons for going back to his family. And if they'd kill her there's little chance they wouldn't go after his kids to make certain he had no attachments and nothing to keep him from doing the oh so important work for the great U. S. of A. "Why were you so fucking important," he muttered.

"I'm not, but you and Kevin… You two had something special inside and I wanted you to have the chance to discover exactly how far you could go."

"Me special? Not a chance in hell. Not next to das wunderkind that was Kevin Fawkes." Darien should have known this would happen. Why couldn't he have been more like his wonderful, amazing brother, who everyone fawned over from the get go. "You don't need to remind me that I've never been as good or smart as him."

"Not as smart…" Mason stood upright, one hand rubbing the back of his neck in a way that was eerily familiar to Darien. "No one ever told you did they?"

"Told me what? That they were surprised I walked upright I'm so stupid?"

"No, that you tested out smarter than your brother," Mason told Darien and stunning him into silence for several minutes before he burst out in harsh laughter.

"Right, me smarter than Mr. Four-PhDs himself."

"I think we can safely say your talents lay elsewhere. I've seen your skills, do you really think they're that common?"

Darien realized his father wasn't joking, wasn't trying to belittle him, but actually meant every word he was saying. This had to be some weird dream, 'cause there's no way in hell this could be real. "Uh, this makes no sense. I never did anything-"

"Of course you did. Maybe not the right thing, but you definitely made an impression on everyone. Did you really think Kevin blackmailed the Official into taking you on?"

"You saying I was groomed for the Agency?" Darien shook his head. "That I was always supposed to go work for the 'Fish? Uncle Peter-"

"Had his own agenda, I am certain. Why else drag Kevin into his pet project," Mason argued, which made way too much sense to Darien.

"But then why push me to follow Kev? I may have been smart enough, but science bored me."

"Because, overall, research is safer. Being a field agent, as you well know, is damned dangerous. You… well, you had the mindset for it, you just needed a bit more seasoning."

Darien desperately wanted to sit down, his knees suddenly feeling weak at this news. Alyx had often wondered if it could be possible, that the two of them ending up at the Agency had been anything but happenstance, that it had been all but planned out from the get go. Oh, he knew she had been intended to join that group her husband worked for, or go to the Centre, but the Official had made his move first and acting on information cached by that same Uncle Peter and had brought her in to save his first investment: Darien Fawkes, the seventeen million dollar screw up. It could be argued better The Agency than the other choices, but, aside from meeting him, she'd probably rather be home with her children. "What the hell do I do now?" he muttered.

"Whatever you want," Mason told him. "I wanted to be there for you, wanted to be a father, but after your mother… I couldn't risk it. Can you understand that?"

Darien nodded. In the same situation he could see himself making the same choice. "I don't have to like it, do I?"

"No. I certainly didn't, but we play the hand we're dealt. Can we move forward from here?"

"I think so? I still have questions."

"Which I will do my best to answer. You understand that unless your girl is really that good that I may not see you again for months."

"Oh, she is that good. But you also have that phone, so unless you are too tech challenged to figure out how to text me you have no excuses for not saying hi regularly… or asking for help should you need it."

Mason chuckled. "I am far from tech challenged… unlike you. I'll do my best, but I'm seriously out of practice sharing any part of my life with others. Too many years working on my own." He tipped his head to the side. "Be there for her, for Alyx. She spends far too much time alone in the field. It gets to you after a while."

"I will."

It was Alyx who broke in on the conversation then.  _*You two okay?*_

_*Just fine. What's up?*_

_*One antsy granny wanting to serve dinner. If you're done trading punches now might be a good time to come in and eat.*_

_*Yes, ma'am. We'll be in in a moment.*_

"Where did you go?" Mason asked, slowly walking towards his son.

"Talking to Alyx. Dinner is ready and Grams wants us inside."

"Ah, might be a good idea to head in then." They walked side-by-side back towards the house. "Is it weird, when she does that?"

Darien shook his head. "Not anymore. I couldn't imagine not being able to communicate with her mind-to-mind. It's… special and a huge part of who she is."

"You realize most people would freak out."

"Yeah, Hobbes did for quite a while."

"But for you it just felt right."

Darien paused. "How'd you know?"

"You fell for her the first time you met, didn't you."

Darien ducked his head not wanting to admit to his father he'd had a bad case of love at first sight with Alyx.

"Curse of the Fawkes men, we always know who we're supposed to be with."

"You and mom?"

He nodded. "First time I looked into her eyes..."

"You fell and never wanted to hit bottom."

"Exactly." Mason swung open the door. "Inside. If your grandmother has to come looking for us we'll never hear the end of it."

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

Alyx had fallen asleep.

Grams had insisted that Alyx do nothing, forcing the men to clean up and then help with dessert. Honestly, his girl hadn't done much all evening other than disseminate information. Grams had seen to that. Thankfully, Alyx had found it amusing more than anything to be waited on hand and foot by two grown men being ordered about by one feisty gray-haired old lady.

Darien had walked out into the living room, Alyx's dessert in hand, to find Grams gently placing a blanket over his sleeping girl. And she wasn't just dozing but out like a light. Grams shooed the two of them back into the kitchen with a glare and a whispered, "You will not wake her," that neither of the men even considered ignoring. Though Darien had taken the time to kiss Alyx gently on the forehead, he doubted there would be any way to get her conscious for at least a couple of hours.

Back in the kitchen his dad asked, "Is she all right?"

Darien nodded. "Just tired." Not a lie precisely, but most certainly not the whole truth. She been wired since coming back from that last job, not shocking given what had happened then and since. While she needed to sleep and he wanted her to sleep, he simply hadn't expected her to do so here.

"Then why do you look freaked out?" his dad asked, a most telling question indeed.

Darien managed a dry chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck to stall for time. How to explain this when he wasn't certain he understood himself. Here they were out in the middle of nowhere, his dad being hunted by assassins, which he now realized put his Grams at risk if they had been tracked here, but too late to put the horse back in the barn now. Then again, his dad was an assassin, a good one. Darien a spy, a decent one and they'd taken every precaution possible. She'd done what she had set out to do tonight and had no distractions to keep her awake. And her body had been placing huge demands upon her, wanting to heal, but unable to do so due to the nature of the injury.

Left alone for all of ten minutes there was little wonder she fell asleep. Sleep she deserved.

He answered, "This is big for her. To be that out means she's comfortable and feels safe. You have no idea how rare that is for her."

"Oh, I might have some idea," Mason responded.

Yeah, his dad probably knew a little something about living on edge for extended periods of time; always having to look over your shoulder, fearing sleep because it made you vulnerable to your enemies.

Darien realized that his dad and Alyx meeting might be a good thing, maybe he could provide some advice on how to turn it off for a little while and just be a person instead of the job.

"We're family, of course she feels safe," Grams stated emphatically, as if it should have been obvious to all of them.

Mason hugged his mother. "You just met her today."

She poked her son in the stomach, making him grunt. "Have you seen the way he looks at her?" She motioned towards Darien. "She's not going anywhere."

"Your mouth to gods ears," Darien said softly, causing his Grams to chuckle.

"You are both welcome to stay here tonight. She needs the sleep." Her tone brooked no argument.

"Thanks, Grams," Darien said, ducking his head. He agreed, even if it meant they'd have to cut out in the early hours of the morning to run home and change before heading into the office to see in which direction this situation had shifted.

He had a feeling the ground they stood upon had begun to crumble beneath their feet.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

"This is a mess, Fawkes," Hobbes complained bitterly, damn near pounding the keys through the desk.

Darien grunted in agreement. Their current job, as handed down by their lord and master, was giving both of them a headache. Thefts ranging from military hardware, to high end tech software had gone missing and somehow they all tied together. The pieces and bits seemingly random and yet… and yet they needed to discover, not who had stolen them as many had been a party to the thefts, but who had been hoarding them and why. The thieves each different and unknowing of each other, the unidentified buyer, however, apparently the same.

And that made it of interest to The Agency.

"Maybe we should have the kid look at this. Maybe she'd have one of her… insights. Tell us what the hell this nutjob is trying to do with all this crap," Hobbes suggested, turning slightly to look at his partner.

Darien cocked his head to the side as he eyed his cranky partner. "Don't you think she has enough on her plate right now?"

Hobbes sighed in irritation. "Her… off the book job can't be taking up that much of her time."

Darien snorted. "If you think that's the only thing she's working on you'd be sadly mistaken. 'Fish has her doing all kinds of hacking while he has her undivided attention. And the Keep has her reviewing datasets by the dozens. Plus the constant tests and x-rays. She's ready to run for the hills." That was putting it mildly. Her crashing at his Grams' place had been a sure sign she was nearing the end of her endurance and that worried him. She had so much on her plate that she never seemed to take the time to just  _be_  and that could end up being a major problem.

Yeah, they'd gotten away for most of a week, but that had come with it's own set of stresses and things had only gotten more complicated since they'd returned to San Diego.

"But I thought she was supposed to be taking it easy?" Hobbes questioned, looking almost as confused as he sounded.

"Apparently, the Official's version of 'taking it easy' is working her twice as hard while she's in town. Though, Keep did make it clear it had to be desk jobs only. They're still pushing her too hard." Darien didn't really know how to fix this. She had to heal on her own, she had been doing most of the research for his dad on her own, and while he and Hobbes were more than willing to help, she was better at doing it on the sly. Plus, the Official had given them several cases to work on with this weird-ass theft one being the priority. Their plate was nearly as full as Alyx's, especially when you added in their after hours plotting.

Hobbes huffed. "Still, thirty minutes of review and she might be able to point us in the right direction."

Darien chuckled at the near desperation in his partner's voice. "I'll ask, but no promises, even she-"

A quick knock on the office door was followed almost instantly by it opening and Drake slipping inside.

"S'up, Drake?" Darien asked, switching tracks easily. The look on the ex-CIA-hacker's face boded ill for someone.

"The Official knows," he stated.

Hobbes leaned back in his chair, rubbing his face. "Could you be a bit less vague?"

Drake met Darien's eyes squarely. "Oh. Crap. How?"

Drake shrugged. "A call got by me. And the Official does not like it when he doesn't know about something."

Hobbes had figured it out by then, a look of weariness passing across his features. "Surprised we kept it a secret this long," he muttered. "Where is he?"

"Heading down to the Keep where Alyx is," Drake answered. "I would highly recommend you intervene."

"Ya think?" Hobbes snarked as he got to his feet. "C'mon, Fawkes, let's rescue the damsel before she kills our boss."

Darien snorted as he got to his feet. "You too, Drake, you're neck deep in this."

The man straightened to his full height, which rivaled Darien's own, clearly taking umbrage with the phrasing. "I never intended to leave her to the proverbial lions…"

"Ease down, Drake, Alyx wouldn't have come to you if she didn't trust you," Darien assured him as he urged the man back out the door. "Now, how pissed is the Official?"

"Well, he didn't yell at me, just gave me the evil eye and walked out of the office."

Hobbes sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh, that ain't good."

"No kidding. Which is why I decided backup would be wise."

"Smart. Probably won't save you, but still smart," Hobbes told him earning a smile from the right hand man.

They rushed down the stairs, then the hallway to the Keep, the door already open, the Keep's voice had been loud enough to be heard before they burst through the double doors at the end of the hall. Hopefully she was getting between Alyx and the sure to be irate Official and not chastising her for him, which was possible given they hadn't let Claire in on the whole side job they'd been working on.

Claire was poking the Official in the chest when they arrived, threatening him with sending Alyx home on sick leave for an extended period, which Darien actually thought would be a good idea.

"Doctor, I just want to speak with her." His tone was calm and controlled, which surprised Darien and meant… He had no idea what that meant and so would have to let the drama play out before they decided on what type of intervention they should take.

"And I've told you, no more assignments, she's doing too much as it stands," the Keeper argued, plainly repeating her words.

Darien couldn't see Alyx, which meant she was in the other half of the lab, so he focused and sent,  _*Everything copacetic in here?*_

She responded, projecting her voice more than loud enough to be heard by everyone, "Yeah, just fine. Keep went into Bobby mode as soon as the 'Fish walked into the lab."

"Bobby mode?" Claire repeated, sounding offended as she swung about to look at the other woman. "You cannot take on any more work right now."

"That's not why he's here, Keepy," Bobby informed her.

The Official turned his heavy gaze upon the three men still standing by the door. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised that you two were involved, but Drake…" He shook his head. "I'm seriously disappointed in you."

"Bullshit," Alyx stated, as she came around the glass divider, clearly not all that concerned about what the Official might do to her… or to them. "You'd be actually angry if this was a real problem."

"Kid?"

"Plausible deniability, Hobbes," Drake explained. "If the Official didn't know, he wouldn't be forced to lie."

The Official nodded. "Though he would like to know what the devil is going on under his nose." He turned to Alyx a hint of pride in those beady eyes of his. "Did you really score Perdue?"

She shrugged. "Yes and no." She glanced over at Darien who nodded ever so slightly. They'd had the talk about what they would do when the Official found out, he just hadn't expected his boss to be quite so reasonable. "We need to do this in a secure location and this room won't cut it. Plus, I'm gonna need to sit at some point."

The Official harrumphed. "Where?"

"The Archives," Hobbes suggested.

"Only if you want her sneezing in fifteen minutes or less," Darien responded, and it was true. The Archives hadn't been maintained to Eberts' OCD standards since the man had been revealed as a double agent for Changeling. Oh, papers still got filed there, but thanks to Drake and Alyx most of the paperwork was done electronically, saving on paper costs, which the Official liked. It helped that they'd been able to purchase comparatively inexpensive computers and do the mods themselves to specs Drake and Alyx had agreed upon and could accomplish on their own. Saved money all the way around for the aging Agency.

"None of the labs are suitable, and are probably bugged," Claire said, earning a sideways glare from the Official, but no disagreement. "I'm assuming you do not want outsiders to overhear?"

Alyx rolled her eyes, the answer to that obvious. "There's the blue room. If there are bugs I can fry them."

The blue room, part of the underground basement complex, had been converted into a physical therapy room when Darien had been recovering from being shot in the back and partially paralyzed. It had since become a sparring or workout room for employees, though most did not use it. Alyx liked to because being so far underground quieted all the voices in her head, the ground itself providing a buffer against the millions of minds in the city that she could not help but feel. Her weeks at The Centre had improved her ability to block all others out of her mind, but she still could not block every single mind for every single moment of every single day and there were few places where she could go and allow her hold to relax even slightly. The blue room was one of them and she took advantage of it when she could. Plus it allowed her to get in a workout during a week of schedule hell.

"We'll need to bring some extra chairs, but, yeah, that should work." Hobbes rolled his shoulders. "Fawkes, c'mon, we get to fetch the chairs." He turned to Alyx. "We'll meet you in five. Make sure the room is clean."

"Of course," she replied, reaching for the cane Claire had insisted she use when she'd refused the wheelchair. "I'm fine, D. I'll give you the deets later, we need to handle this first."

"Yes, you do," the Official grumbled, not about to allow them to wiggle out this time.

Once settled in the blue room Alyx stood before them all calm and quiet, not a ruffled feather to be felt. He couldn't say he was surprised she'd prepared for the Official discovering their ploy, but had no clue how she intended to handle it. This should be interesting.

"Miss Silver, is there a problem?"

"Not really. Are you certain you want to know? Once I bring you in you lose your only out," she tipped her head slightly to one side.

"I am aware," he rumbled. "But since I already know  _of_  it, I might as well know it all. I'll give you credit, I honestly thought no one could make a move like this under my nose. I'm presuming you did not intend to foil Yakiro's shot when you were assigned that mission."

"No, sir. Not until I saw the target." The truth and nothing but.

"And the target was Forrester Perdue." A statement, as even their boss could connect those dots, big as they were.

"Yes, sir."

"And why did you care?" The Official questioned. "The case with Royce was months ago; Perdue was never directly involved, why would he turn to you now?"

Alyx sighed softly. "Let's just say there are extenuating circumstances." An answer that wasn't one by any stretch of the imagination. "What is your stance on him: debrief or exterminate?"

"I haven't decided yet," he responded, look neutral. Which could mean there had been some serious pressure from above to remove Perdue from the equation. And  _that_  meant he had information that someone high up on the food chain did not want to see the light of day… ever.

"Fair enough. He came to me a few weeks after Royce was arrested to thank me for my assistance and discretion. Didn't seem right to let him take a modified frangible round to the head less than a year later."

Darien had to hold back the snort of amusement at her phrasing. He knew she intended to make every effort to keep his father's true identity a secret, but both he and his dad had agreed that if that's what it took to save him, they'd tell the Official and hope it made a difference, because if the man chose to throw Perdue to the wolves there would be little they could do to prevent it.

"You have him at a secure location?"

"Yes, Chief," Hobbes answered, managing to not flinch when the Official turned his heavy gaze on them.

"And why didn't you report this to me?"

"Same reason Drake didn't, to give you that out should the shit hit the fan." Hobbes relaxed back into his chair, one ankle on the opposite knee. "Kid's handled this the best she could, except for getting herself shot that is."

The Official's eyes narrowed dangerously. He seemed to get that something was up, which it was, of course, though they could only hope he did not know precisely what or he could use it against them. "What kind of deal have you made with Perdue?"

Darien shrugged, thankful their boss had been wrong with his first guess. "None really. Needed to find out how high up the hit went first."

The Official pinched the bridge of his nose. "And you thought letting everyone think that we had him would get them to back down?"

"No, I thought it would give them a specific target and force them to go through channels to get to him," Alyx explained.

"Which is why you had Drake running interference." The Official sighed heavily.

"Sir, I-"

"Drake, believe it or not, I'm not angry. Miss Silver is good at her job and… has probably made the right decision in this case." He nodded at her. "Sit, please. We need to figure out how to handle this situation."

Alyx gimped her way over to the remaining chair and settled heavily into it. "I want it on the record that I had no intention to undermine your authority, but to protect it."

"Which I do appreciate, but it now has me playing catch-up." The neutral look on their boss' face was belied by the glint of greed in his eyes. Scoring Perdue, if only in the eyes of other agencies was a seriously big deal, but the consequences could swing either way.

Alyx failed to look the least bit contrite. "Well, if things had gone as I intended you would never have known he'd even been here." She ran her fingers through her hair. "So, are you going to take over or trust that I know what I'm doing?"

He frowned slightly, as if disappointed that she thought he would not trust her judgement. "They are going to be coming for Perdue. Yakiro most certainly. He'll want to finish the job. He might just take you out as well."

Darien shook his head. They'd made certain to look into the backlash from the missed shot, just in case. Didn't want one of the best snipers on the planet going after his girl in a snit. Yakiro was good enough to actually pull off assassinating her. "Nah, he thinks she just made a noob mistake. She  _officially_  had no idea where he was shooting from, just confirming the target."

The Official stared at Darien wide-eyed for a moment before pulling that mask of indifferent authority back into place. "Hobbes briefed you, huh?"

"Actually, Fawkes discovered that on his own. He's become quite adept at research, especially when it concerns Miss Silver," Drake responded, actually sounding impressed, which was a nice nod. Darien might have been tech challenged, but he was not only learning, but discovering that computers could be useful not only for his day job, but his extracurricular activities. And Alyx was a more than willing teacher. Plus she had fun designing new toys for him, even crazy-ass ones he dreamed up.

"They're all going to want a piece of him," the Official stated.

"Probably. Do we let them have him or assist a man who was burned for doing the right thing?" Alyx asked, appearing to be willing to abide by whatever decision he boss made. Darien knew that to be anything but the truth. If the Official decided to go for the kill Perdue would vanish.

But, thankfully, the Official shook his head. "I'll protect him, but he'll need to agree to terms."

"I'll see what kind of deal I can cut," she answered, as planned.

"No. Any deal will be negotiated by me in this office. If you want to offer him your personal protection, that's fine, but if this Agency is involved then it needs to be done here. Understood?"

"Of course," she conceded. "Tomorrow morning?"

The Official looked suspicious. "Why not today?"

"Because I want to make some arrangements to get him here on the sly," she told him. "Other interested parties believe he's still within the environs of this building, I do not want them to realize he hasn't been, so I need to sneak him back in."

"Boss, the hit is coming, no need to advertise Perdue's location any sooner than necessary," Hobbes pointed out, not the least bit wrong.

"I want her… your promise that you will bring in Perdue for negotiations."

She nodded. "Promise. I'll keep Drake in the loop as to the plans, okay?"

The Official nodded. "That'll do." He pushed himself upright. "This is potentially dangerous corner you've backed this Agency into."

"I know, sir, but that doesn't mean it wasn't the right thing to do." She lifted her chin to meet her boss' heavy gaze, not defiance so much as confidence. She had done the right thing and would not back down.

He chuckled darkly. "True. Very true. Get to it."

They all nodded and their boss left the room, leaving the four of them to begin planning.

"So, are you using the back door this time?" Drake asked, looking a tad stunned that everything had gone as well as it had.

Alyx looked over at Darien, who nodded. "Yeah. Full on sneak in this time." He turned back to her. "Is he in town yet?"

She shook her head. "No. He had to finish up the job he was on. Should be here in a couple of days if all goes well. We should be able to hold the fort down until then. He's already begun work on the papers we'll need, so we'll be able to move quickly once he's here."

"How much of this did you plan ahead of time?" Drake asked.

Hobbes laughed. "All of it. Bet she even planned for the 'Fish wanting him brought in."

Alyx shrugged. "Well I admit to hoping it wouldn't be necessary, but given he could have ordered us to complete the hit ourselves, I'll take it."

"I'm pretty certain the Official knows you wouldn't permit that to happen," Drake pointed out.

"I am well aware of that bit of truth, Quentin." She raised an eyebrow in emphasis. "I'll take what I can get. At least he feels we've scored a coup and not fucked up." She rubbed her face in her hands looking tired. "Damn, I have a ton of work to do."

"We can-"

She shook her head, cutting off what was certain to be an offer of help from Drake. "No, the fewer who know the better. You'll have the security needs by end of day today. The rest…"

"Need to know," Darien said softly, earning a tiny smile for his reward.

"Exactly," Hobbes agreed. "Let me know what you need from me, kid."

"Of course, Bobby." Leaning heavily on the cane she stood. "How about a lift home. I need to do this not here."

Hobbes shook his head and chuckled. "Kid, you sound like you need serious painkillers and a nap."

"That too," she agreed. "Work first, recovery later."

"And me?" Darien asked, wondering why she wanted Hobbes to take her home and not himself.

"You will be checking on some things here, once I'm in front of my computer. If… if that's okay."

"Fawkes, it's probably something she wants your thiefy expertise for," Hobbes said, taking a reasonable stab in the dark.

She nodded.

Drake threw up his hands, looking like he wanted to stick his fingers in his ears and shout  _lalalalalalalalala_  to drown out anything compromising they might say. "If you need anything from me…"

"I will, and will call." She gazed at the three men before her. "I know I'm keeping things close to the vest, but-"

Hobbes shook his head. "You're doing your job and you're lead." He glanced over at Darien. "We've got your back."

Darien wasn't too keen on the support only role, given it involved his dad, but his partner had a point, she was most certainly lead on this and she wanted his dad dead no more than he did. It didn't hurt that she was damn good at her job. "Whatever you need, sweets."

She grinned. "Don't worry, you'll enjoy it."

He raised his eyebrows. "Enjoy what?"

"Oh, nothing too strenuous. Just casing a couple places."

Drake sighed. "And on that bit of information that I probably didn't want to know, I am out of here." He turned about and made good his escape even as Hobbes laughed.

Darien smiled at his girl and rubbed his hands together. "I knew I kept you around for a reason. What's the target?"

 


	5. Chapter 5

 

 

  
It had taken six hours, and way too much Quicksilver, but Darien had finally found the location where the service tunnel that led to the former boiler room in the sub-sub- _sub_ -basement of the Agency began. Well, one of the connections, anyway, and the easiest one to get to; there turned out to be an entire tunnel system under certain parts of the city, especially in these older buildings.

It was very public with decent security for mid-to-high end restaurant, but it still had taken him less than fifteen minutes in the building to find the basement entrance, the old access door behind a defunct cooler, pick the almost as ancient Masterlock and verify the way through was clear. A couple of fancy pieces of tech created by Alyx placed right where she wanted them - one at either end - later and she had the system on the grid and would able to track Mason as he made his way beneath the city to the Agency.

Alyx had either arranged for or provided all the necessary accoutrements for Mason. A car, a disguise and a plan. Darien, already at the restaurant, enjoyed an early lunch. They'd practiced the timing out at Grams's house. His dad would have roughly ninety seconds invisible once they started to get from the dining area to the sub-basement that housed the escape route. The only way to get there unseen.

Darien watched his father enter, be seated and order, all as planned. He, to all appearances, had no interest in anything other than his steak, beer and the pretty waitress taking care of his every whim. The flirting lighthearted and not serious other than as a way for her to garner a larger than usual tip.

Across the dining room his father placed his order and pulled out a newspaper to read. No one appeared to take any notice of them. Not in the building, at least. Outside? There was no way to know. To not attract any undue attention they were on their own, no agents, no Hobbes, no Alyx. Oh, they each had their phones with the GPS on so she could track them and he was certain she was keeping a mental eye on him in case something went wrong, but otherwise they were on their own.

His phone chimed and he glanced down to see a text from Alyx.  _How's lunch?_

He smiled.  _Just fine._ He texted back.  _Be out of here within the hour._

He drank down a swallow of beer while waiting for her response. He managed not to frown when he read it.  _You have eyes on you. Might want to take an alternate route back to home base._

_Do we need to accelerate the plan?_

_No. Just be prepared to disappear on your return. They do need to see you leave the restaurant._

_Are they onto him?_

He waited impatiently for her response. If they, whichever they had made an appearance today, knew Perdue sat in this restaurant the entire plan could fall apart quickly. While Darien was in full view of the windows that overlooked the street, his dad had been sat back by the bar and, even he had to admit, looked nothing like himself. The usual far more relaxed attire, replaced with a business suit and briefcase. The wig and makeup job would have fooled even Darien if he hadn't seen it ahead of time.

If they had somehow figured out that the man across the room was Perdue and that he had not been safely tucked within the loving bosom of the Agency for the last few days things could… would fall apart quickly. While he had eaten here before Darien did not do it often and he supposed it could be regarded as a change in pattern and that could have alerted the watchers that something unusual were taking place. But why follow him in the first place?

Unless…

Unless someone had figured out that Forrester Perdue was actually Mason Fawkes.

And, if so, who better to follow than the son of the best sniper in the world. Royce could have leaked that intel to anyone, even from the pit he had been buried in for his attempted act of treason.

Fuck. Could things get any more complicated?

Stupid thing to ask; of course they could, but for now they would have to stick to the plan and hope to hell it didn't blow up in their faces.

His phone finally chimed.

_No. Following you, not him._

Which could mean anything… or nothing at all.  _Do they still think he's at the Agency?_

The wait for a response was nerve wracking. He could only assume she was trying to find out that very information even as he asked. They'd been keeping an eye on the interagency chatter, but what they'd been hearing could have been lies and prevarications to lead them to thinking one thing when the truth was something else entirely.

_The hounds are casting._

He felt his stomach drop through the floor. The code phrase that had been chosen to warn that the situation had escalated to dangerous levels, including pressure being put on the Official in regards to Perdue and what he might or might not have told the Agency and, possibly, how the Official planned to exploit said information.

Christ. Threats had clearly been leveled, which meant Darien had become a target as well, one designed to force the Official to comply with whatever demand had been issued. Due to his overenthusiastic watchers the plan would need to be modified, if only slightly. It would require more Quicksilver, but guaranteed things would go smoothly here. He kind of wished he could just take the back route as well. That he didn't have to make the statement that those watching didn't matter and that their wants were unimportant.

He glanced down at his wrist. He had one red, which would be more than enough to get him and his father to the back door in the restaurant with plenty of sanity to spare, however, the plan dictated that he walk back out that front door, which would put him right into the crosshairs of who knew how many professional hitmen.

He was going to have to burn up the Quicksilver to get away clean.

Across the room his dad's head came up, and met Darien's eyes with concern buried in them, which implied Alyx had been busy texting him the details of the situation as well. Still, while the warning had been issued the hurry up had not, which meant they continue as if nothing had changed. He glanced at his watch; fifteen minutes before they moved. Good. That should give him time to settle the anxious butterflies that had taken up residence in his gut. He would finish lunch, enjoy the relaxed atmosphere in this fine establishment and only then would he put his skills to work and do the job at hand.

The time crawled past, and he debated dessert even as the sand ran out of the hourglass. He dug cash out of his wallet, more than enough to cover the bill, plus a generous tip and got to his feet, phone in hand as he tapped out a text one-handed. He headed for the men's room. He was joined by his father who had actually gotten up from his table before him. The restrooms were near the kitchen door they needed to get into and right next to a serious blind spot in the security; they simply had to make certain they were not observed by anyone as they ducked into the tiny alcove that once upon a time housed a bank of payphones.

"You ready for this?" Darien asked of his dad whose face was set in a mask of seriousness.

"Yes. Will you have a secure route back?"

Clearly Alyx had apprised him of the current situation. "Yep. I'll be back there within the hour, no worries." He set a hand on his father's shoulder and, after one last glance about to make certain they were unobserved, let the Quicksilver flow. He'd been practicing for speed and it took mere seconds to coat the both of them and with a shimmer of momentary light they disappeared. Mason had been shown the route on a sketched out map just in case they'd been forced to separate, but it hadn't been necessary, so Darien led the way into the depths of the kitchen, dodging the staff as they efficiently moved about the expansive space, down the set of stairs to the wine cellar and liquor storage, into the little used room behind it where the tunnel entrance had been forgotten decades ago.

Darien got the door open and waved his dad in. "The Quicksilver will fall off in a couple of minutes, Alyx will track you. Contact her if there are any problems."

"Son… be careful."

Darien nodded, knowing his expression would be hidden thanks to the Quicksilver. "I will." And with that he shut the door, locked it and moved the cooler back into place. He made his way back upstairs and into the bathroom, waiting until locked in a stall to make a reappearance. He glanced at his watch. He'd been gone from his table seven minutes, well within the window he'd been granted. However, as he turned his wrist slightly, he'd used up four scales on the snake, putting him at five. He had till seven or so before he got cranky, but had a feeling he'd be using it up quickly. He washed his hands, then pulled out his phone and texted,  _Todd is away._

The response was not a heartening one.  _The hounds are crying._

Which meant Darien's watchers had noticed he'd left his table and were moving in. It didn't actually change anything for him, he still had to walk out that front door and make his way back to the Agency. Only now, instead of walking the couple blocks back to the Agency, he'd have to lose his followers and hope like hell they wouldn't just shoot him.

_Double back or go to ground._

Meaning should he lead the watchers on a merry chase or run for the safety of the Agency as quickly as possible. The irony of using fox hunting terms had not been lost on either of the Fawkes men, his father actually laughing out loud and giving his heartfelt approval and making Alyx smile, if fleetingly.

_Go to ground._

Shit. Things must be falling apart quickly. He texted back,  _Tally ho_ , in a vain effort to lighten the mood.

_Go._  Was the quick response and he stopped stalling. He gave a nod to his waitress who smiled at him as he passed and then he was out the door, into the warmth of the late morning sunshine. He slid his sunglasses into place and turned left, heading in the direction of the Agency. He forced himself to relax and simply walk, weaving his way through the light foot traffic on the sidewalk. He'd gone about a block when Alyx poked him.  _*You need to find a crowd and vanish.*_

He kept moving, looking for a larger group of people.  _*You sure about this, there's lots of eyes out here.*_

_*No choice. Bottom up and no one will notice. Then run. We'll meet you en route.*_

Crap. Crap. Crap. He spotted a group of tourists, cameras at the ready, being herded by a guide who seemed to be pointing out filming locations from some movie or TV show. They would definitely be too distracted to notice a guy turning invisible in their midst.

He slid into the group and did exactly as she had suggested, starting with his feet he allowed the Quicksilver to flow and slide upwards as fast as he could manage it. By the time he'd passed through the crowd he had vanished. He moved off a few steps, out of the flow of people, checking out the lay of the land. He spotted two guys with hands to their ears and looked to be a tad stressed that they could no longer find their target. A target he suspected was one now invisible man. Though he doubted they knew about his talent, else they'd have thermals on.

Looked like the fox hunt had become literal.

He took off at a run, dodging people who could not see him.  _*Got at least two near me. Give me an exit plan.*_

_*Use your normal route, we'll find you.*_

Darien had to trust that they would be there for him and did the only thing he could: he ran.

Not that easy on a busy sidewalk, so he shifted out into the street, not into traffic, but right along the parked cars. Risky, given the drivers could not see him, but allowed him to actually move. He had to dodge people and cars to make the turn onto G Street, but barely slowed down to do so.

He had the building within sight when he realized traffic had stopped, cars unmoving on one of the few two-way streets in the city. People still strolled along the sidewalks, seemingly unconcerned by the surprise traffic jam happening beside them. He had a feeling it had been created to make him an easier target.

He made it only another twenty yards before his head exploded in pain and he skidded to a halt, one hand on the hot hood of a parked minivan, the Quicksilver cascading away from his body, the pain and petite mal seizures stripping his control away and leaving him visible and vulnerable in the middle of the street with a great big shoot me now target on his back.

He lifted his head to see Alyx running full tilt towards him, blood coloring the light gray slacks she wore in an ever-growing stain of red, hair streaming behind her. Her face a mask seriousness usually reserved for situations that had gone totally fubar and that could only mean this one had. She came to a startling stop before him, grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to the side, out into the open giving any and every one a clear view of him.

"D?"

He figured he must be Stage Two at the very least, though based on the pounding in his head probably closer to Three and well on his way to Four. "I got this," he assured her, lying smoothly, when all he wanted was to drag her into the shadows of the building and see exactly what she had on under that low cut shirt she currently wore.

"Don't move," she ordered, making want to snarl and jerk his arm from her grip. He resisted that urge, the more pressing danger of his potential death by high speed projectile forcing him to remain calm for the moment. A radio appeared in her hand from nowhere, but that must have been with her the entire time and he just hadn't noticed what with everything else going on. She released him to adjust the knob on the top and said, "Yakiro, unless you want yet another miss on your record I highly recommend you stand down."

That had to be the strangest thing for her to say in this situation unless… He glanced down at his chest to see one tiny red dot just left of center. A perfect heart shot. He swallowed hard as his adrenaline spiked and those voices in the back of his head silenced as realization struck. Somewhere out there, one of the best assassins in the world had him in his sights and the only thing that might save him was the woman standing before him.

The seconds ticked by far too slowly to be real, but the red dot finally disappeared. Alyx turned her head slightly and several of the better Agency mooks in civvies melted out of the crowd to surround them.

Darien let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Shit," he muttered. He ran a hand through his hair, discovering it to be drooping thanks to sweat. "Alyx-"

"Agency, now. I need fresh bandages and you need Counteragent." She reached for his hand and tugged him into motion, not a trace of fear in her demeanor even though she surely could feel what the toxin wanted to do with and to her. She had never been afraid of him and that confidence allowed him to firm up his control, to force those impulses back down and allow him to act like a normal human being who had just had a sniper try and take him out.

"Is he going to go after you?" Darien asked, certain she'd understand.

She shook her head. "Not right now." She tipped her head up to gaze about the canyon of buildings. "He's not the only one out there. We need to put on a good show today."

"A show? Is that all this is?" he snarled, wanting to wrap his hand about her throat and shake… violently. So maybe his control wasn't as in hand as he thought.

"Yep. A show to make them believe we've had Perdue under our roof the entire time. You know that."

And he did. He just wasn't too thrilled about the nearly being shot or the lovely bout of Quicksilver Madness he was currently partaking of. "Where's Hobbes?"

"Guarding the henhouse," she told him, though it took a second for him to figure out that meant he was with Perdue.

"Shouldn't it be the other way 'round?"

She paused, the foursome of non-suits stopping dead as if it had been planned, and she turned to look him in the eye. "He can't stop bullets in mid-air."

Darien rubbed his face in his hands, trying to force that fucking evil genie back into it's bottle for the few minutes it would take to get to the Keep. "Point taken. Let's get off the street. I'm feeling way too exposed… and cranky right about now."

"No shit, you look like you've been on one hell of a bender. Any chance that was a three martini lunch?" She kept her tone light, even as she turned, hand on his arm to get him moving again.

"My head would hurt less if I was drunk," he grouched.

"Today, maybe, tomorrow not so much."

Darien snorted, actually thankful she was keeping the mood as light as possible given the dark thoughts roiling about in his head. "Can't win for losing. Everything go well on the other end?"

"Picture perfect," she assured him as they finally arrived at the building that housed the Agency. "Get traffic moving again and make certain we maintain the perimeter."

"Yes, ma'am," the one hulking agent said, his partner opening the main door for them, like good suits should.

He and Alyx walked inside, the dimmer light easing the pain stabbing through his eyes to bounce off the back of his brain and ricochet about, making those voices up their volume now that one distraction had been removed. "Keep?"

"Yep, you need to see our Claire ASAP. Sorry about that." They made their way to the stairs that would get them to the basement quickly.

"Why sorry? You made the best call you could and I seem to recall you saving my life back there so…"

She smiled shyly, ducking her head and making him want her right then and now. They were the only ones in the stairwell, the Official too cheap for in house security in the deep, dark recesses of the building, which included right here so Darien found no reason to not act on the impulse that shot through his body. Grasping her by the upper arm he spun her about, buried his free hand in her hair and dove in for a kiss.

Damn, it had been too long. Between her injury and him being angry about his dad they hadn't really been together in a couple of weeks and he missed it. She didn't fight him for an instant, one hand coming up to curve about his neck, fingers playing with the curls that tended to form there and making him shiver in unadulterated pleasure.

She opened her mouth when he bit her lip, moaning softly even as he slipped his tongue along hers . He shifted the hand that had been on her arm to pull out her shirt and slide underneath, the feel of her skin silky against his palm. He would have her, now, and to hell with anything else.

He growled softly under his breath, fully intending to remove her shirt when the gland reasserted its dominance, forcing him away from her, back arching as the pain radiated out from within his head to his extremities. No longer able to remain upright, his legs collapsed, but instead of an uncomfortable contact with the hard surface of the landing hands held him tight and lowered him relatively gently to the floor.

In the midst of a mind-searing seizure came a bright pin-prick of pain to his arm and the world vanished in a rush of chemical bliss; the burning, relieving sensation of Counteragent in his system sending him into momentary darkness as it flushed the toxin from his bloodstream.

He came back to awareness to hear Claire admonishing Alyx.

"... straight to the Keep."

He opened his eyes in time to see Alyx shrug. "He got distracted. Better here with me than somewhere more public and potentially dangerous, don't you think?"

He raised his hand and set gentle fingers on her cheek. "You okay?"

She smiled, "Just fine, dearheart, you were very much a gentleman, considering."

"Let's get the two of you to the Keep," Claire suggested, standing and holding out a hand to him.

He took it and stood shakily, his legs feeling wobbly even though… or maybe because the worst of the danger had passed. He noticed blood staining his pant leg. He knew it couldn't be his and remembered noticing her bleeding when running down the street towards him. "Yeah, that might be a good idea. How bad?" he asked of Alyx.

She looked at him in confusion.

Claire, however, noticed, now that Darien wasn't hiding the evidence of her idiocy. "Bloody hell, Alyx. You blew your stitches."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," she sneered. "Given my options, a little bleeding is nothing." She set a hand on Darien's arm. "I am fine and will actually heal now," she assured him. "Slap a bandage on for now, we'll deal with it later, we have a show to put on."

"Where's my… Perdue?" If Claire noticed the slip up she let it pass. He set a hand on Alyx's shoulder for support - to support her, as once the adrenaline wore off her leg was going to start hurting and she would probably be in need of the assistance.

"Downstairs, waiting for Alyx," Claire answered.

"Meet us there with the first aid kit. Oh, and bring a set of scrub pants." Alyx turned to Darien. "You got a spare t-shirt here?"

"Uh, I think so. Why?" He probably sounded as confused as he looked.

"Theater. Need to make it look like he's been here, remember? And that spiffy suit won't cut it."

Darien sighed. "Yeah. Sorry, forgot we're not done yet. I'll grab it." He gave her a quick kiss. "This'll work."

"Of course it will, it's my idea." And on those words she strolled away, heading down the stairs and deeper into the basement.

"You to the Keep," Claire ordered, though there was a hint of a smile on her face. "Are you all right?"

"Fine," he assured her. He followed her down the stairs and through the double doors; the Keep door standing open. "How'd you know we were in the stairwell?" he asked as they entered the dimly lit lab.

"How do you think?"

"Alyx ratted me out?" he mock-complained.

"Justifiably, I would say." She gathered up the items she would need to patch Alyx up. "You understand she had no intention of forcing you to go Mad."

"I know. We all try to make sure I don't go Mad, mostly because I tend to beat the crap out of Alyx when I do." True enough. Though the times he'd gone Mad in the last six months could be counted on one hand, he still had a tendency to target Alyx if she were nearby as she always seemed to be the first thing on his mind, mad or sane. Least these days fists tended to not be involved, sex, however… Yeah, he went there, often.

"Darien… I wish we could safely remove the toxin producing cell from the gland, or that the inhibitor for it worked without worse side-effects than going mad. You and she have come so far, she would do nothing to jeopardize your relationship."

Darien went over to the exam chair and dug a set of scrubs out of the drawer. "Not even for the job?" he snarked.

"Not for anything," Claire stated, hands full of supplies. "I know she is away a lot, on jobs she can't discuss, but she wants to be here with you."

He sighed softly, tossing the scrubs over his shoulder. "I know. And I know she's good, but even she can be grabbed, The Centre proved that. I just… I'm afraid one day she just won't come home and I'll be the one telling her kids." He rubbed a hand through his hair, flattening it down. "And that scares me."

"You do realize she worries the same about you?" Claire had gathered all she needed, but stood there watching him with those penetrating blue eyes of hers.

He sighed softly and looked away. "Yeah, I know, but it's not like I get to stray too far from the loving bosom of the Agency."

Claire snorted. "But you are put in no less danger. More in some ways as you are always close to home and there are those who know it."

Shit. This was so messed up. He just wanted a life with her, but the majority of their time was taken up with saving the world. And his own ass. "It's not fair," he muttered, mostly at that uncaring world.

"No, it's not, but it is the life you have." She moved next to him, looking up into his eyes. "You still have the option to leave when you are ready."

"Yeah, I know. Just been a week is all, ignore my moping, 'kay?"

"After a bout of Madness, I most certainly will not hold some moodiness against you." She took a couple steps towards the door, glancing back over her shoulder at him. "Shall we?"

He nodded and trailed after her. He dashed down the hall to the back access to the tiny parking lot behind the Agency and the van he and Hobbes spent most of their time in and where he had learned to keep a spare change of clothes. Sadly, he couldn't remember if said clothes were clean, but it probably didn't matter for Alyx's plan.

He arrived in time to see Claire tsking over the state of Alyx's leg, who sat there with a bored expression on her face. The ruined pants draped over the back of a chair replaced with a stylish pair of Fish & Game shorts. The admonishments had clearly worn thin over the last couple of weeks. He gave her a smile of encouragement, knowing she didn't really need the doctor's help, but that she allowed Claire to do her job just because. Alyx had such heart, and wanted nothing more than a normal life… with him and they, so long as they were who and what they were, would never have it in anything but tiny bits and pieces. Nows and thens that kept them from going mad and railing at the world about the unfairness of it all.

He set the duffle down and pawed through it to find the plain white t-shirt, which he pulled out. He handed the shirt and scrub bottoms over to his dad. Who took them with a bemused look on his face. He'd lost the jacket and tie, the sleeves of the crisp blue dress shirt precisely rolled to mid-forearm. He looked as if he'd been born to wear a business suit. "I take it the plan has not been shared yet?"

"Drake is grabbing the make up kit, we'll be ready to go in ten minutes," Alyx said, the bored look deepening. "If you would change into those, Mr. Perdue."

Mason cocked a single eyebrow, but nodded. "Of course." Then moved off to a secluded corner of the room to do so.

"Why is he not in handcuffs?" Claire asked in honest curiosity. She completed wrapping the gauze around Alyx's thigh then taped it into place.

"Because he is not our prisoner. He came in voluntarily, however, we need those watching to believe he's been here in our… guest room." Alyx glanced over at Mason as he stepped back out. "And he needs to look the part." She stood up and walked over to meet Mason halfway, taking the neatly folded business clothes from him and set them on a table. She dug into the duffle and pulled out a tub of hair goop. She gestured at Mason's hair. "May I?"

He grinned and nodded, squatting down a bit so that she could reach. She opened the jar, dug some out, smearing it on both hands then proceeded to bury them in Mason's hair. She made sure to work it in completely then with a seemingly casual effort ran her hands through in a smooth motion then stepped back so he could stand. The hair had gone from business perfect to tousled bedhead with a side of prison bunk.

Darien was actually impressed. "And the make up?"

Alyx went to the sink to rinse her hands off, the limp still there, but not as bad as it had been in the previous week. "No one's going to buy clean shaven if he's been in our cell. Going to fake up some scruff."

Mason chuckled. "You really do have all the angles covered, don't you?"

She shrugged. "I do my best."

"You do better than that," Claire stated, narrowed eyes shifting from one Fawkes to the other and making Darien wonder what was up. "Do you need me for anything else?"

"No, Keepy. Though you should probably stay in the Keep, safest spot in here for the next little while," Darien told her. She didn't know Perdue was anything other than a former agent they were helping and he wasn't certain if he wanted her to know. They had been trying awfully hard to not reveal exactly who Perdue was and why he seemed to be of importance to the two of them. Alyx kept the emotions hidden better, but if push came to shove she would tell those she thought necessary in order to achieve their goals. He'd gotten better at his poker face when it came to the personal overlapping with work, but she was still better; could divorce the two even when they were one and the same.

"All right. Let me know if you need anything," Claire said as she gathered up the items and left the room.

Drake came in as she went out. "Here's the kit," he said, giving a nod to the Keeper as he passed her.

"Thanks, Drake. Are the sharks circling yet?" Alyx gestured for him to set the kit on the table with the other accoutrements of her current trade.

He rubbed his face with one hand. "You have no clue. We might as well have broadcast this live on TV considering how many eyes are on this building right now."

"Jammers still working?" she asked as she dug into the kit and removing the items she wanted. Mason had already grabbed a chair and sat down near her.

"Just as you planned. They are hearing nothing we don't want them to," Drake assured her. "You really need to show me how you make these toys so fast."

Darien snorted. "You're assuming she didn't have them stashed somewhere, just waiting to bring them out to play." Which she had. With the workroom they'd installed in the house when an idea struck she could work on it immediately instead of waiting for a chance to get out to the storage unit. She had created any number of interesting toys for any number of interesting purposes, only a few of which she had revealed at work. Hell, some of them had been made just for him and his off the book excursions.

"Time to assume your positions. Garner and Johns ready to play the heavies?"

"Waiting right outside," Drake said with a nod. "We going full show with cuffs?"

She glanced over at Mason. "You gonna be a good boy or should we cuff ya?"

Mason snorted. "I daresay I can play the part of one who has not be held in the most pleasant of accommodations."

Drake rubbed his hands together. "Excellent. I'll inform the Official that we're ready. Five minutes?"

Alyx nodded. She waited for him to leave before sighing softly.

"You okay, sweets?" Darien sidled up next to her and set what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Just getting tired is all. I'll be glad when we can move on from this stupid game." She looked over at Mason. "I do not want… outsiders aware of your connection to Darien, however, I fear we may need to reveal it to the Official to get him to play along fully. Are you two prepared for that?"

Mason glanced over at his son before answering, "We already discussed this; if necessary you tell him. That said, I would guess, based on your reluctance, that you suspect the Official would use it against Darien and you."

"There is nothing he won't use to manipulate us," Darien groused. Their boss had and still would, though certain things had been taken off the table when Darien had chosen to stay with the Agency. Their boss still tried any tactic he could to get them to toe the line, though often it wasn't really necessary, he just felt the need to flex his bossy muscles now and then. "But I'll take some manipulation if it'll keep you safe."

Mason nodded slowly. "Same here. If it's the only way to guarantee your plan working, then, yes, we will let the Official know exactly who I am."

Alyx tipped her head to one side. "Why do I get the feeling the 'Fish would be better off not knowing."

Mason just smiled.

"All right, enough with the badassery, let's get this show on the road," Darien grumbled, wondering if he would ever have half the confidence his father did.

 

~^~

 

The Official sat behind his desk frowning. Perdue stood between Garner and Johns looking tired and bedraggled. He stood there in his stocking feet, blue scrub pants and white t-shirt looking like utter crap. Between Alyx's make up job and his father's obvious acting skills, Darien doubted anyone watching would not believe what was about to go down for a second.

Drake stood behind and to the right of the Official, just like Eberts had once upon a time. Hobbes had perched on the edge of the desk, arms crossed over his chest, look wary. Alyx, after a quick change to a fresh unbloodied pair of slacks, and Darien had come in together, following behind Perdue and his bookends. Darien took over the end of the conference table while Alyx walked over to the windows and proceeded to open all the blinds, allowing in the early afternoon sunlight.

They would be hiding nothing on this occasion. Alyx wanted to make certain everyone who was spying on them would feel like idiots, and would know that it wasn't just the Agency protecting Perdue, but her. And while the Official had some power and the ability to stave off most internal attacks, Alyx wanted to make it clear that messing with  _her_  would not end well for anyone.

"So, Perdue, I'm given to understand you not enjoying your current accommodations," the Official said, a hint of a smug smile on his face.

Perdue shrugged. "I've been in worse."

The Official's look hardened. "I can downgrade if you'd prefer."

Perdue sighed softly. "Not necessary. I am willing to deal, if you are."

"If you make it worth my while, of course," the Official replied magnanimously, spreading his hands wide. "What is it you want?"

"My life back would be nice," Perdue groused.

"I doubt I'll be able to accomplish that, however, I might be able to provide you a new one." The Official just oozed confidence, which he probably should given he had Perdue over a barrel.

Darien knew this drama playing out before him was just that, a play, theatre for the benefit of those watching, but in a sense it was also very real. The Official would get something for this one way or another, sadly it would most likely be Alyx to give up more of her life to do what she felt were right for his father. Damn it all. He hated when she became backed into a corner.

"In exchange for what?" Perdue asked, sounding justifiably suspicious.

"What do you have that interests me?"

Perdue looked irritated. "Information, of course. I do believe that is why so many of them want me dead."

The Official nodded sagely. "And if I were interested in your… other skills?"

Darien felt a zing of adrenaline shoot through him at the very thought his boss would use his father as an assassin. Alyx met his eyes, concern for him buried in hers, so he sucked it up and trusted his father would do the right thing. What the right thing was on this occasion remained unknown.

"I've retired. If information isn't enough then…" Perdue shrugged. It wasn't like there were any better offers. The Official could put him on ice indefinitely if he wanted to.

"And if I choose to just put you back into the cage?"

Perdue snorted. "Do you really think your… creative security is why I'm still here? I have a target on my back, first reasonable deal gets what I know. It's that simple."

The Official drummed his fingers on the desk, pretending to contemplate if the intel would be worth the expense. The whole world could see the instant he decided yes. He nodded. "Agreed, a new life in exchange for all you know. I will-"

"No."

Darien blinked, wondering exactly where the hell that had come from. Mason had agreed to give them intel to get him this new lease on life, and maybe spend some time with his family.

The Official's face darkened noticeably.

"So, you want us to bury you in a hole?" Hobbes asked, playing the part of the heavy to the hilt.

"No. I want to deal, but with her." Perdue pointed at Alyx, who kept her look bland.

_*Baby?*_

_*Not my idea. He came up with this all on his own.*_

"Why her?" Drake asked, sounding legitimately curious as to the older ex-agents reasoning.

Perdue turned to look at Alyx. "Because, although she had no reason to, she helped me when everyone else presumed my guilt."

The Official sighed softly. "Again, if I say no?"

Perdue just tipped his head to the side.

"Fine," the Official huffed, "Agent Silver will handle any and all debriefings. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Good. You will be escorted back downstairs while we make arrangements to move you to our safe house. Does that work for you?"

"I'll have all the paperwork drawn up for you to review before you leave," Drake added quickly.

Of course the Official would want it in writing. Is dotted and Ts crossed as always. Plus, in this case, it covered his own ass when those above his pay grade started making calls to ask why he had chosen to help Perdue instead of eliminate the perceived threat.

"That'll do," Perdue agreed. With a quick glance at Darien he allowed his two shadows to escort him from the room. Not to the cell,which he had never even been near, but back to the blue room to change and wait for them to get back to him.

Alyx pushed away from the wall, preparing to leave when the Official cleared his throat. "A moment agents, if you would."

"Sure, boss, whatcha need?" Hobbes asked shifting to stand next to Darien, who hadn't budged from his perch, while Alyx proceeded to walk down the line of windows and close the blinds, leaving the room in near darkness for a moment before the lights kicked on. She held up a finger, keeping them silent for a few more seconds then nodded.

"Okay, jammers are back on; we are free to talk."

"I do not appreciate you going behind my back with Perdue," the Official rumbled, look dark.

Alyx shook her head. "I didn't, I promise. You wanted to make the deal and that's what I told him."

"Why you?" Drake asked in place of the Official.

She shrugged. "You would have to ask him, I suppose."

"Maybe he just trusts her more since she saved his ass six months ago," Hobbes suggested, and it had some logic to it, but based on the look on their boss's face it wouldn't cut it.

Still the Official gave the official slow nod that said he could buy that line, legitimate or not. "So why do you care? Yes, the easiest way to get Royce off Fawkes' back involved exposing what he'd done to Perdue, but his current level of trust in you seems unwarranted."

"Does there need to be a reason?" Darien questioned, hoping like hell to derail the Official from this track.

The boss turned his eyes to Darien. "On this occasion there does. She has gone out on a limb for this man, gone behind my back, has used her personal resources to protect him and arrange a new life for him. I want to know why."

Alyx said, "Drake, I need you to leave."

Drake pouted much to Darien's amusement. "Why?"

She cocked her head. "Plausible deniability."

The Official chuckled. "Go, Drake. If I feel you need to know I will fill you in."

"And Hobbes gets to stay," Drake sounded indignant. "Why does he get to know?"

"You're presuming he doesn't already, and she," Darien pointed at Alyx, "does not answer to you," he responded his voice utterly bland.

Drake actually looked offended, and opened his mouth to continue his bitching, but Alyx ran over the top of him.

"Quentin, I'm trying to protect you."

His mouth snapped shut and he nodded curtly. "Let me know if you need anything."

"Of course," she said.

Silence settled over the room as Drake grabbed his laptop and left through the glass door. The silence continued for several ever-increasingly tense minutes until Hobbes broke the uneasy stalemate.

"Kid, how many?"

She shifted her weight off her right leg and leaned back against the wall. "Oh, only four… shots. I discouraged about a half dozen others."

Darien would have spit out his drink if he'd been drinking one. "Damn. Are they that afraid of what he knows?"

She nodded then turned to their boss. "Hypothetically?"

He tipped his head slightly in acknowledgement of her request of prevarication. "If you prefer."

"What if one ex-rogue-agent were related to a certain former employee who visited about six months ago?"

Darien watched the Official process that roundabout information, the plethora of emotions crawling across his features. When realization struck as to what she had not directly said he actually swore. "How long have you known?"

"We figured it out when Doc Fawkes was visiting," Hobbes answered.

The Official removed his glasses and set them on the table. "So, this is personal."

"Of course, and don't forget I did make the effort to not directly involve you or the Agency."

"Which you did solely to take the target off of Perdue's back and put it on mine," he stated. "A good move I might add."

"Until you found out about it," Darien muttered.

"Also true," The Official agreed. "They are going to push even harder now."

"I'm counting on it," she stated.

"She has a plan," Darien told him, hell told himself. She had a plan and it would work and his dad would be free and they would have a chance to be some warped version of family, and no matter how hard it would be worth the risks.

"To her… your credit, you always have a plan."

"And you don't?" she snarked. "I knew there would be some serious repercussions to the Royce incident, hell, I'm still discovering shit I never wanted to know, and so I prepared for the inevitable."

"Why do I have the feeling you have not disclosed much of this… shit to me?" The Official didn't seem overly upset, he had learned that Alyx always had a reason for what she did even if he didn't always approve of or agree with it. The reasoning still remained valid.

She rubbed her forehead. "Not today, sir. I need to focus on this. I will give you a report next week on what I suspect, if that is agreeable."

Something in her tone must have warned the Official she wasn't stalling or obfuscating, as the instant flush of anger vanished very quickly and he nodded. Darien wanted to know now as just the hint she'd given was kinda freaking him the fuck out. Whatever she had learned worried her, which meant it had to be big and bad with all caps.

And then he wanted to give her a hug. All that shit she knew and kept to herself, unable to share the strain or stress with anyone and yet she could still let it all go the moment she walked in the front door at their home.

"This explains why Royce was so interested in him," the Official said, as he waved vaguely at Darien.

Shit. Why hadn't he put those pieces together all on his own. They had suspected Royce knew about the gland's extra talent of being able to host another consciousness, but to only now realize that he'd wanted to use Darien also because of familial connection… well, frankly, it caused his brain to hurt.

"We really need to find out who spilled the beans to Royce," Hobbes stated. "That info is more dangerous in some ways that just knowing he can go invisible. What if he gets grabbed and some idiot shoves some random schmuck into his head? I mean, yeah, I get it could be useful for getting intel from a dead agent or something if there were no other way, but Fawkesy here shouldn't be playing medium to someone's dead great-aunt just because she was important to some bigwig senator with more power than sense."

The repercussions to the whole Royce mess were still reverberating through the spy community, with Alyx at the epicenter of it all trying to piece together what had gone on, when, and ordered by whom with little or nothing to go on.

"Bobby, he's as safe as he's going to be for now. Until I can figure out who was pulling Royce's strings and shut him down that's about all we can hope for." She ran her hands through her hair, fingers getting caught in snarls the days whirlwind activities had created. "We all have targets on our backs, we just can't let them slow us down."

That stopped Hobbes' budding rant cold. The reality was that they were never safe,  _safer_ , yes, every now and then, but never truly safe.

"And what is my next move?" the Official asked, clearly allowing Alyx to take point on this. And the blame should things fall apart at the seams.

She gave them a wan smile. "You need to prepare. They are going to start calling soon and you need to decide how to handle them."

"They are going to try to force you to renege on the deal," Hobbes added unnecessarily.

"Will I actually get anything out of this deal?" the Official questioned.

Alyx grinned. "That is the one thing I am certain of. We're just going to have to give them what they want first."

"And what is it they want?" the Official asked even though he already knew the answer. He wanted it said out loud by one of them.

"Perdue dead, what else. And once they are certain of it he'll be free to live his life and feed us every bit of intel he has in his head with no one the wiser," Darien explained, given he, in some ways, had the most to lose in this situation. Of course his dad could lose his life and that would be horrible. He could not lose his dad again; not so soon anyway.

"A decent plan. But they will want proof."

"They'll have it," Alyx assured him. "Is there anything else right now? I have arrangements to make."

The Official raised a finger. "One more: is Perdue going to remain in the building for the time being?"

She shook her head. "Safe house. I have no intention on placing anything or anyone in this building in the line of fire. We'll make a big production out of it, but he won't be in the vehicle they'll be following and not in the place they expect him to be. Not yet anyway. When the time comes they'll be able to find him, promise."

"Good enough. Fill me in on what I need to know and I'll trust you to handle the minutiae." He leaned back in the chair looking satisfied. "And get some rest; even being shot by Yakiro shouldn't have you looking this worn."

She snorted. "Yes, sir."

Darien slid off the table and went to her, and he had to agree with the Official, she looked worn, trying to juggle too many things and keep everyone happy at the same time took its toll, and it was showing. Him not being exactly helpful only exacerbated the problems. Even after everything he was still her center and she would be off balance when he was being pissy with her. His moods affecting her no matter how hard they tried to prevent it.

"C'mon, you. Let's get this started so we can all get some rest."

She nodded and allowed him to provide support as she limped towards the door, Hobbes taking up position behind them as they left the room to head back downstairs.

"We'll meet at the house by seven. Food and libations will be provided for all."

"Cool. And until then?"

"Using a ton a Quicksilver to make Forrester Perdue disappear," she said with a sigh.

"Fun," Darien muttered. "Will I being joining in on this adventure?"

"Yep," she informed him, ducking her head so that she looked at the floor. "Sorry, 'bout that."

Darien shook his head. "No worries. I'm in, even if it does mean multiple shots in one day." And he meant it. She'd been right, this was family and you did whatever it took, even if it meant going Mad and being jabbed by huge honking needles more often than he preferred.

"Okay. Let's get to Perdue and put together the team we need to pull this off."

"Lead the way," Hobbes said opening the door to the stairwell and waving her through. "This should be interesting."

Yeah, that was an understatement.

 


	6. Chapter 6

Alyx was in the pool.

Slow steady strokes back and forth the length of the sparkling clear water. She'd been in the water mere minutes after getting home, bandaged leg or not.

His dad had taken a quick shower, changing back into the jeans and t-shirt he preferred and clearly felt most comfortable in. Darien, after grabbing some cold beers, had changed into a pair of swim trunks, but had not made use of the water, not wanting to disturb Alyx's efforts at clearing her mind and attempting to relax.

They did have planning to do, but were waiting for Bobby to arrive before getting serious about it. The smoker was doing its thing with a rack of ribs and a whole chicken. Vegetables would be grilled eventually, and a bread pudding was baking in the oven. Alcohol would be the main component of the evening, Darien was sure, all of them needing to blur those lines for a little while.

Plus, they had learned that they just came up with more creative plans when they all had a good buzz going.

"How is she?" Mason asked as he sat down on the lounge chair nearest to Darien, who sat at the edge of the pool with his feet dangling in the water.

"Good question. Considering she ran full tilt down the street to save me today, I would guess better," Darien answered turning to look at his dad, view darkened by the sunglasses he wore.  _*Hey, babe, got a sec to chat?*_

If she didn't respond he wouldn't push and risk disturbing her efforts at finding her zen, but she immediately changed direction and swam over to them. She bobbed in the water next Darien's feet. She grabbed his ankle, a tingle of energy where her hand rested. "S'up, boys?"

Mason chuckled. "Just wanted to make certain you were all right."

She nodded. "Last bits are officially out so I should start healing like I usually do. Stupid thing itches like crazy already."

"Trying to make up for lost time, probably," Darien observed and she nodded.

"Which is why I'm swimming."

Mason looked appropriately confused.

"She pulls in energy from everything around her; lots of brownian movement going on when she swims, lets her pull in more than if she's just sitting and soaking up sunshine," Darien explained.

"But isn't she using energy to swim?"

"Did you watch her? Her stroke is simple and efficient." Darien knew she'd been on the dive team back in high school and college, which, while it didn't require large amounts of distance swimming, still had trained her to do it right.

"And I expend less energy than I pull in. I can do that," She hooked her thumb over her shoulder, "for hours… and have."

"She's not kidding. It's one of the ways she decompresses from a stressful mission." Darien shrugged. "Lots of stuff we can't tell each other, so we've found ways to deal without ending up in a fight over nothing."

"I can't even imagine living with someone I work with," Mason said, then turned away to look out over the yard and in the distance the ocean. "I screwed it up badly enough."

Alyx levered herself up and out of the pool in one smooth if wet motion. "You couldn't tell the truth and she couldn't live with the lie." She shrugged. "I get it. Could have been worse though."

"How?" Mason asked head snapping about to meet her eyes.

"She could have believed every word and stayed. How much would you have cared for her when you realized that?"

Darien sucked in a breath in shock. Alyx's words had not been harsh, but they resonated with him. That's how it had been with him and Casey; she had believed and fallen in love with the lie that he had sold her. Never once suspecting that he had been something other than what he portrayed when with her. In retrospect it was kind of… sad. People might accuse him of being crappy thief and conman due to his conscience, but he'd had Casey over a barrel, and if he'd never been caught - for doing the right thing, admittedly - she still wouldn't have a clue.

Mason nodded slowly. "You have a point, I will admit." He must have seen something in her eyes. "I take it you know this from personal experience."

"That's putting it mildly." She got to her feet and moved to get her towel and once less drippy pulled on the robe Darien had brought out for her. The sun well on its way to the horizon and the onshore breeze making the air cooler than she liked on her skin. "Have you ever heard of The Centre out of Blue Cove Delaware?"

Mason blinked twice. "Yes. Their Triumverate is a nasty bunch." Then he cocked his head to the side. "Don't tell me you are mixed up with them."

Alyx snorted. "Right down to my DNA." She took a moment to squeeze excess water from her hair. "My friend who is helping us escaped from there back in the nineties, he lives to be a thorn in their side."

Mason looked to Darien for the details. "Friend? Or something closer."

Darien glanced at Alyx who didn't react one way or another. "Well, we use the term  _brother_  since it's simpler than explaining she is his female clone."

Mason looked like he needed to sit down even though he already was. "You're part of the Pretender program?"

Alyx nodded, her look carefully blank, clearly waiting to see how his dad was going to handle that bit of intel.

"That explains why you're so damn good," Mason said, actually sounding a touch in awe. "No wonder you were able to handle the genetic modifications of the QSX Project, you were designed for it."

Alyx laughed lightly. "You are taking this far too well." She glanced up at the clear sky overhead.

Mason echoed her gaze and saw nothing. He turned to Darien for answers. "What's she looking for?"

"A shoe," Darien told his dad getting a chuckle in response.

"There is a permanent BOLO out for your… brother. His sims were highly valued by certain factions of the government. None of their other proteges have even come close."

She smiled softly. "He is special that way. What I need to know is what you will do when he arrives?"

"Do? Thank him, most likely. He's helping me to regain my life. Should I do something else?" Mason could probably buy his way back into the biz with Jarod, Darien suddenly realized; Alyx had obviously been aware of that risk from the getgo and kept it to herself until now. And while Mason didn't seem the type to bite the hand that fed him unless necessary, she had needed to be certain before welcoming Jarod into their home.

"Good," she said with a quick nod. "I'm going to scamper off and get decent for company and finish up some things for dinner. Bobby should be here soon."

Darien got up and went to her, planting a soft kiss on her forehead when she tipped her head up to look at him. "I'll let him in. You take your time."

She took a moment to lean against him, then simply walked away, the limp barely noticeable now.

"Damn, she's tough," Mason said softly.

Darien shrugged, "Not really."

"She is where it counts. You keep her… human." Mason got to his feet and walked over to the grill, canting it open slightly to check on the meat, releasing scents that would be making the neighbors jealous. Alyx's rib rub was to die for and smelled incredible.

"I try to. Sometimes it's not easy." He rubbed the back of his head, oddly glad he had the opportunity to talk about this with someone other than Father Tom, whose advice, while not bad per se, tended to have a skewed religious slant to it. His dad had actually been there, dealing with emotional crap while doing the job. Even if advice were not involved the understanding ear to bend would be a nice change. Both Hobbes and Claire maxed out their tolerance for relationship crap pretty quickly, which was reasonable given they all worked together as well. The line had to be drawn somewhere and taking sides in the relationship wars was one of those things they had all tried to avoid.

"She puts up walls," Mason said with a knowing look. "And you never learned how to, not really. You'd get defensive and act out in all the wrong ways. I'm betting she holds everything inside, making you guess what's wrong."

Darien probably looked as dumbfounded as he felt.

"You are remarkably like your mother that way."

Darien ducked his head. "Not sure that's a good thing."

"Not a bad one either," Mason pointed out. "Be patient with her. She puts those walls up for a reason. Probably to protect you. Add in her other abilities and I'm betting there's times she's simply overwhelmed and needs that distance to sort everything out. My job was far simpler in most ways. Get to the target. Eliminate the target." He shrugged. "Yeah, there were times that took months, but that is what it boiled down to."

"And what she has to do can be a lot more complex. Who she has to  _be_  a lot more complex." Darien walked over to the bar where he'd left his t-shirt and pulled it on. Then he reached around for one of the beers set in a bucket of ice. He twisted off the top and downed a portion. "Jarod has helped her learn to keep the different people she has to be separate, but there are times she still forgets who she is. I just try to remind her."

"And what does she do for you?"

Not an easy question by any stretch of the imagination, but one he knew the answer to. "She sees  _me._  And it's something I didn't even know I needed until I met her."

His father was saved from commentary by the trilling of Darien's phone. The ringtone belonging to one Bobby Hobbes, who was most likely just letting him know he was on the way. "Hey, partner, what's the good word?"

" _She insisted on coming. Said she needed to check on Alyx."_

"Oh crap. You're bringing Claire? Are you nuts?"

" _No nuttier than normal. This was not an arguement I was gonna win. We'll just have to deal. Just wanted to give you fair warning is all."_

"Thanks, Hobbesy. We'll gird our loins. See you in a few." He snapped the phone shut and set it back down.

"Problem?"

"Maybe?" Darien said, rubbing the back of his head. "Claire has invited herself to this confab, and we are unsure of her ulterior motives."

"Does she have to have ulterior motives?"

"Claire? On this occasion, yeah, I'm pretty damn certain of it," Darien stated, positive this would not end well.

"She suspects you two are related," Alyx said behind them, startling Darien badly enough to spill his drink. "I had to head her off at the pass earlier." She had showered and changed, her hair pulled back into a damp bun at the base of her neck. She wore shorts and a tank top, showing off the deep tan she earned during lazy hours by the pool.

She set down the empty tray she carried on the counter next to the smoker, awaiting the meat that would be done shortly. "I have baked beans heating on the stove, green beans steaming, and bread in the oven. Anything else you two want to add to the menu?"

"Aside from enough scotch to make the Keepy forget why she came? Nah. You know what you're doing."

Alyx snorted. "Some days more than others, obviously." She moved over to the bar and hoisted herself up onto one of the stools. "Keep's no fool and smelled something hinky with the special treatment we were giving you," she said to Mason. "And she's observant, while the two of you did a decent job playing the part, the resemblance is there for anyone to see."

"No wonder she was looking at me cross-eyed," Mason stated, a frown appearing on his face. "Is this going to be a problem?"

Darien shrugged. "We told the Official, so even if she runs to tattle to him the point is moot." He glanced over at Alyx. "I don't see her turning you in to… to… They're not exactly bad guys, are they."

"Depends on your definition I suppose." Mason didn't look to thrilled with this turn of events. "How does she know I'm here at all?"

"She doesn't," Alyx told them. "Far as she knows you were delivered to the safe house as planned. Her involvement done for the time being."

"Shit. How badly does this screw up your plans?"

"Not at all," she assured both of them. "Relax, Claire is on our side… mostly anyway."

"That is not giving me a lot of confidence."

"Don't think it was meant to, but it doesn't matter. If this goes sideways, barring something over the top like a bunker buster striking our location unexpectedly, she will see to it you are out of the line of fire and set for life." Darien gave Alyx a small grin. "She's pretty awesome that way."

She preened. "Yes, yes I am."

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

Claire had managed to hold her tongue until after they had all eaten, had several drinks apiece, and moved outside to enjoy the glorious evening air by the firepit that Alyx had brought to life with a casual thought. She'd double checked Alyx's leg - had to since it had been her pretense for tagging along - stating it appeared to be healing finally, even after all the stupid things Alyx had done to it. The sideways glances and narrowed eyes had kept Alyx amused and restraining laughter the entire time.

Darien had endeavored to take it the same way, Mason, however, had only seemed to worry more as time passed, waiting for that shoe Alyx had looked up into the sky for earlier to drop upon all their heads. He had no reason to trust Claire other than their word, and given the good Keeper's behavior the last few hours, there was little wonder the older spy had remained on edge and suspicious.

"Claire, just ask and get it over with before you make someone explode with the stress." Hobbes stood to get another bottle of alcohol; the kind didn't really matter as they would all pretty much drink whatever. "Plus we need to get to the planning portion of this evening." He walked around the group, pouring the amber liquid into each glass as it was held up. Only Claire abstained, her tolerance for hard liquor nonexistent.

She huffed in irritation. "I came to make certain Alyx is okay, you then invited me to stay for dinner. Why else would I have come over?"

All eyes turned to Mason AKA Forrester Perdue, who sipped at his drink and said nothing.

"Who is he?" Claire asked in exasperation. "Yes, I know he's this Perdue, but who else is he? Why is he here and not at the safe house?"

Darien intended to answer, began trying to sort out the best words to use when his dad beat him to the punch.

"My real name is Mason Fawkes. I'm Darien's father."

Claire's mouth dropped open and and stayed that way long enough that Hobbes chuckled, then reached out to tap her chin to get her to close it. "Keep, it ain't that big a deal."

"Not a big deal? How can you think that?" she snapped, twisting about in her seat to shout at Hobbes directly. "How long have you known?"

"Six months give or take," Hobbes answered.

"Uh, a couple weeks here," Darien said, sticking his hand up and waving it to get her ire away from his partner. "Knocked me for a loop too, Keepy. But… we're working it out." He glanced at the others involved one at a time, receiving blank looks across the board. None of them about to step up to fill in any of the missing pieces.

"You've known he," Claire waved at Mason, "was Darien's father for months, knew he wasn't a thief as everyone thought and you couldn't be bothered to tell me?"

"And why, exactly, would you need to know that?" Alyx questioned, leaning back in the chair and closing her eyes. She looked in dire need of a long winter's nap that she would not be getting for some time yet. As soon as Jarod hit town they could move onto the next step. A step they needed to work out the details of instead of arguing over who knew what when.

"You seem to like to forget that I am his doctor and I take care of his mental health as well as his physical. Learning this information could have-"

"What, Keep? Made him cranky and act pissy towards me and the kid for a couple of days?" Hobbes snarked. "Which, may I just point out, you never even noticed."

"Bloody hell," Claire muttered, tucking strands of blonde hair behind her ear.

"This wasn't something we wanted to advertise, Claire," Darien pointed out, drinking down the little that remained in his glass and then pouring more. "Besides, it's not like he's going to be here for long."

"And you're not happy about that," Claire said in her perfect sympathetic voice.

She wanted in on this and would play any and every card she could if he'd let her. But, aside from needing her help to assure the body that went to the morgue would convince the world that one Forrester Perdue had most certainly died, they really didn't. Alyx had already taken care of most of it, some of the genetic voodoo would require the good doctor's help, but little else. He most certainly had no interest in pouring his heart out to her about the unfairness of getting his dad back only to lose him again days later.

That's what he had Alyx and Bobby for, who would understand without trying to psychoanalyze him.

"Keep, right now it doesn't matter. We have a job to do, and we're going to do it. What I want, hell, what any of us wants doesn't matter, right?" He looked over at his dad who had carefully schooled his expression into a neutral one.

"And we should be getting on with it," Hobbed muttered. "Kid, I know you've got a rough plan already, I assume we're here to work out the details?"

"That we are." Alyx had slouched down in her chair, dragging her eyes open to only half closed. "There will be some risks, but when we pull this off they will all believe one Forrester Perdue has met the demise they hoped for." She turned her head slightly to focus on Mason. "If that works for you."

He chuckled softly. "Works just fine, now how are we going to kill me off?"

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

Dawn was just a couple hours away when Darien finally attempted to drag Alyx off to bed. Hobbes had left with Claire just after one a.m. Dad had gone to bed a little while later after a soft, tense conversation with Alyx that he seemed satisfied with when he walked away. Darien had been curious, but hadn't asked, fearing it would lead to a discussion that could lead to an argument and that would not be a good thing. So, he let it go, dragged her away from the maps she seemed to find so fascinating and tried to encourage her up the stairs to their bedroom.

Of course, it was at the stairs that she stopped cold, refusing to continue and managed to shift away when he tried to pick her up and carry her there.

"You need to sleep," he stated, not about to back down. Yeah, she might only actually get a couple hours, but they would be needed to pull off this crazy-ass plan they'd come up with.

"I am aware. Just not with you." She didn't sound upset with him, so he had no clue why she was refusing to come to bed.

He sat down on the steps, looking up at her in utter confusion. "What did I do wrong this time?"

She sighed softly. "Nothing. I just don't want to hurt you."

"Well, hate to point this out, but not wanting to sleep with me kinda hurts."

"Darien," She reached out and cup his chin gently, "I never said I didn't  _want_  to sleep with you, just that I won't."

Darien drew in a shaky breath then kissed her palm. He had learned not to make assumptions. She had her reasons, always did, he just had to be brave enough to ask her. She wouldn't always tell, but he'd never know until he tried. "Okay, why?"

She moved closer, sliding her hand back into his hair, playing with the curls he knew to be there. "Because now that I can heal, I'm going to do it in overdrive and I don't want you hurt because of it."

"Uh, what? How would you healing hurt me?" He understood, if just barely, as no one truly understood how she could do some of the things she did, how she healed faster than the rest of the mere mortals, but had no idea how it might harm him.

She leaned forward, pressing her lips gently against his cheek. "I'm a lot stronger now," she reminded, lips moving softly on his skin, making him close his eyes in pleasure. "I draw in energy from every possible source, including any _one_ near me. I have some control when conscious, but none when asleep."

"And? You know I'll do what I can to help. If that means being a little more tired or whatever, I'll do it. We both need to be on top of our game to pull this off, so the sooner you heal, the better."

"But I-"

"What's the worst that'll happen?"

"We'd probably just sleep longer than normal," she answered as his hands came up to rest on her hips.

"You mean more than two hours?" he asked, trying for levity, but his want of her intruded into his voice. "Come to bed, sleep with me."

"Just sleep?" She encouraged him to tip his head up and he looked into her eyes and just let himself fall again. That need for her that had stirred earlier while Quicksilvermad returned. He wanted to take her then and there, but swallowed it down. She shivered, clearly feeling all that he did. She hadn't tried to stop him in the stairwell, which suggested she had wanted him just as much, injured or not.

"I'm willing to expend some energy if you are," he told her, lifting his head to bite her on the chin, causing her to suck in a breath and shudder.

"Darien, we-"

"We need this," he told her, pulling her in closer to kiss the hollow of her throat, teasing the smooth skin with his tongue. "I've been an ass, I know, forcing you to block me out to protect yourself, I want… need you to let me back in. Please. We work best when together and we're going to need that edge to pull this off." His hands wandered, one higher and one lower, finding skin where he could and endeavoring to make her feel what he did through his very touch.

She gave in and stopped fighting, if she had ever really been, cupped his face in both hands and kissed him hungrily and he let her, his hands exploring all that he could reach for several long minutes. When she pulled away, her eyes had dilated wide, her skin flushed pink with passion she nodded. "You've convinced me. Take me to our bed."

He laughed softly, not about to argue with her. With a soft growl he stood, scooped her up in his arms and carried her upstairs, her lips hot against the side of his neck the entire way.

He kicked the bedroom door closed behind them, walked across the room and set her gently on the bed. "Do we have to go into the office tomorrow?"

She shook her head. "Not really, I can work from here if needed."

He grinned. "Good." And then made every effort to exhaust her and encourage her to stay in bed with him for as long as possible.

And for her part, she didn't argue or raise a single word of complaint.

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

"So, you are the one who is going to facilitate my new lease on life." Mason turned to Alyx. "He doesn't look nearly as scary as all the reports claim."

Alyx snickered. "He's a big teddy bear for the most part, but don't get him riled. He will defend what he believes in like a mama bear defends her cubs."

"Good. The world could use more of that kind of integrity," Mason stated, every word the truth from what Darien could tell.

Jarod looked over at Alyx who shrugged and said, "I didn't coach him."

"Never would have suggested you did. Yet he still knows who I am. Who I really am." There was no accusation in Jarod's voice, but the look in his eyes turned wary.

Mason spread his hands. "You can't think your Triumverate didn't look outside for help when they had little success tracking you down."

"And yet he's pretended to be any number of agents and they still can't find him," Alyx pointed out in a droll tone.

"Clearly, he's just that good," Mason responded.

"Or the government just that stupid," Darien muttered causing everyone to laugh.

"Why help me?" Mason questioned, leaning back against the decorative table along the wall. While ostensibly a foyer the area was open and led directly into several other rooms.

Jarod shrugged. "Because she asked and I was in a position to do so." He then tipped his head slightly, eyes narrowing. "Though I suspect she's helping because you are related to Darien. Father would be my guess."

Mason's lips tightened and he turned to Alyx. "I asked him to help, and explained what skills I needed, nothing else."

"The family resemblance is obvious and your age would either make you an uncle or father," Jarod explained, that innocence that sometimes hung about him suddenly on display. "Sorry, that's how my mind works."

Mason shook his head. "You aren't the only one to figure that out recently. Why should I trust you?"

"Why should I trust you? This could all be an elaborate plan to capture me for The Centre." Jarod didn't seem the least bit concerned that might be the case, thankfully. "Do you trust Alyx?"

Mason twitched, but nodded. "As do you, I suppose. Is that enough?"

"I think it will have to be." Jarod turned to Alyx. "Do you have a place I can work?"

"And stay, if you like. We have plenty of room and won't be stepping on each others toes."

"I can see that," Jarod said as he allowed his eyes to rove over the expansive house, what of it he could see anyway. "I know you have some money tucked away, but isn't this a bit… extravagant? Especially for just the two of you?"

Darien had a feeling Jarod knew about Alyx's inability to have more children, but perhaps not her hopes to change that. Still from his perspective the house was seriously overkill for just the two of them. "Not as expensive as you might think thanks to a bitter divorce and us offering cash up front. Plus it gives us some serious privacy for more… personal endeavors."

Jarod chuckled. "I imagine it does. Will you have all the equipment I need?"

Alyx nodded. "I make my own papers now and then, though I do like to outsource on occasion."

"Shouldn't the Agency be handling any identification you might need?" Mason questioned.

"Have you been following along? The Agency is broke most of the time and the ones she makes in her spare time are miles better. 'Fish likes to retread previously used IDs and we've been caught with our pants down a time or two." Darien couldn't help the bitterness that crawled into his voice, he'd damn near gotten killed over some crappy IDs the Agency had provided.

Mason shook his head ever so slightly. "I didn't realize things were that bad." He gazed over the room the way Jarod had a few minutes ago, a contemplative look on his face. "So how did you two manage to afford this place on government salaries?"

Darien glanced over at Alyx, who shrugged. She trusted both men and obviously had no concerns about revealing a few more tidbits about her more esoteric skills. "Well, she earned some serious cash on an outside job way back when and let's just say she has mad skills when playing the stock market."

"And that's before we get into more generic betting," Alyx added, the corners of her lips just barely lifting in the hint of a grin.

"I have the feeling you find it quite easy to see the trends and move your money accordingly," Jarod said, making it clear he found it just as easy. "You mentioned an outside source for papers? Someone local?"

Darien snorted. "Mob pizza."

"Mob pizza?" Mason and Jarod had equal looks of confusion on their faces while Alyx burst out into peals of laughter.

"In Vino Veritas. Local Italian place that is mob run. The owner and current mob boss is one Lenny Facinelli who is one of Alyx's contacts. He'd do just about anything for her, including making the bodies disappear if necessary," Darien explained, earning a look of concern from Mason and one of pride from Jarod, making it obvious which one believed in making and using any contacts possible.

"Oooh, mob pizza for dinner. Let me give them a call." Alyx flounced away, bare feet barely touching the floor heading for one of the house phones to call in some awesome take out.

Jarod watched her like a hawk until she turned the corner and passed out of sight. He turned to Darien. "How badly hurt is she?"

"She's not," Darien told him only to have his dad clear his throat and shake his head. "What? She's not. She's healing just fine now."

"The two of you slept for nine hours. Even I know that's not normal… for her, anyway." Mason actually looked worried and Darien found that touching. Seemed Alyx grew on everyone who took the time to get to know her. Hell, even Arnaud would take her back in a hot second if she would only be willing to go all sith and help him expand his business. She was fucking scary when she went all dark side, but no less skilled.

Jarod raised one eyebrow in clear question.

Darien sighed. "She's fine. She slept so long because her body went into overdrive to heal. And I ain't complaining because, yeah, she normally only sleeps a couple hours a night."

"That few?" Jarod didn't sound happy about that. "Her time at The Centre…" He trailed off.

"Yeah, it changed her, but she has the control she lacked before, and the confidence to do her job and then come home and be herself. You helped her achieve that." Darien knew it to be true. Yeah, she'd been a prisoner at The Centre for over a month, but some good had come out of it. Not the least of which was her coming  _home_. To this house. Their house. Their  _home_. She came home every time she went out of town and Darien treasured that more than she could possible know.

He turned his head to see her standing in the doorway watching him with a tiny smile gracing her features. Then again, maybe she did.

"Dinner will arrive in an hour. In the meantime you may feel free to abuse the camera equipment and get this show on the road." She turned to Mason. "Do you need time to pretty up?"

Mason snickered. "No. I am not nearly as vain as my son."

"Well, that's good to know," Jarod commented, earning a smile from Alyx and a mock-glare from Darien.

"Look who's talking there pretty-boy," Darien came right back with, and he wasn't wrong. Jarod looked like had stepped off the pages of GQ. From his perfect haircut to the shoes that cost more than a months pay Jarod was the picture of male perfection. Darien would be jealous if it wasn't for the fact that he knew the only interest Jarod had in Alyx was familial.

Jarod simply stood there oozing confidence. He didn't need to do anything else. He could play a part with the best of them, hell, he was the best of them. He could be anyone or anything he wanted to be. Today he was playing saviour for his dad. A role he excelled at according to Alyx.

Alyx bopped into the room, taking Jarod's suitcase and briefcase from him, tugging the overcoat off and draping it over her arm. "Relax, Jarod, you're safe here."

He sighed. "I know that. I'm ostensibly here to kill him." He pointed at Mason who tensed.

Darien felt his heart stutter in his chest. They'd let the man into their home and he planned on killing his father? "Jarod-"

"I'm not going to, of course," he assured everyone. "But the sharks are circling." He turned to Alyx who looked calm and unconcerned, which eased Darien's burgeoning worry. "I'm hoping you know exactly what is going on out there."

She nodded. "Been trying to not let them know, so thanks for spilling those beans."

Jarod's face fell. "I only wanted to make certain they were fully aware of the situation."

"How bad is it?" Mason asked, not about to let Alyx out of it this time based on the look on his face.

She shrugged. "About what you expect. Every professional hitter on the planet is gunning for you and they all know you are at the Agency. It changes nothing other than your death needs to be a spectacle that will leave no doubt for anyone."

She went to the hall closet and hung up Jarod's coat with a casualness that concerned Darien. She was good, he knew that, but this had to go off perfectly or his dad and probably others he gave a flying fuck about would be very, _very_  dead.

"Alyx-"

"Darien, you knew this was coming. And, yes, they are going to be targeting us to get to him," She thrust a hand out in the direction of Mason, "but it changes nothing."

She look from one man to the other exasperation coloring her features. "Come on, do you really think I don't have every possible contingency covered that I can? Whims of fate are mostly out of my reach, but if I get any warnings you can be damn certain I'll act on them."

Jarod nodded. "Fair enough. Do you have a location chosen?"

She looked thankful that at least one of them believed in her. Darien did as well, it was just more complicated since his father was involved.

"Narrowed it down to four, five locations all of which have their own unique pros and cons. Was planning on bouncing them off all of you later - during dinner probably." She didn't appear overly upset, almost hyper in fact, which probably meant her body was still running in overdrive and needed to do something to burn off the excess energy. "Now, you two go take some pretty pictures while I set things up for dinner." She waved at Jarod to scoot, though Darien had to wonder how he would know where to go, when he remembered that her connection to him was also a permanent part of her… of them and she'd probably given him the entire layout of the house including the passwords to get into the less public rooms.

She then bounced over to Darien, popped up on her toes for one instant to kiss him on the cheek before prancing off, her mood contagious and making him smile.

"If that's what a real night of sleep does for her… I hope it continues," Mason said as he shook his head and smiled. "Now, how can I be of assistance?"

Jarod and Mason walked off chatting amiably enough leaving Darien alone in the foyer. After debating a moment he trailed after Alyx who had taken up residence in their expansive kitchen. If the doors along one wall were opened they could wander right out into the pool area, and they were indeed currently open. The late afternoon breeze just starting to be felt. She had taken over the table in the so-called breakfast nook with a computer and several maps. Plates and glasses were on the counter by the bar stools, clearly where they would be eating. She was digging in the huge fridge, sorting through various libations being kept there. They also had a wine cellar that she was adding to one bottle at a time, though most had not been wine, but expensive liquors and meads that she'd taken a liking to.

He moved up behind her, setting a gentle hand on her hip. She didn't even flinch, surely knowing exactly where he'd been the entire time. "Try not to eavesdrop on Jarod. I imagine the conversation between him and my dad will be interesting to say the least."

She snorted and stood, open beer in hand that she handed to him. "Very interesting indeed, but nothing too embarrassing." She stepped aside and closed the door, her own beer in hand. "He's going to have to play the heavy once it becomes known he's in town. This particular Pretend is a mechanic."

Darien swallowed the beer around a sudden lump in his throat. "You mean hitman."

She nodded. "You can't be surprised. The hit on your father has been farmed out to, shall we say, non-union contractors. They want him dead in a bad way."

"Who are 'they'?" he asked, and not for the first time.

"Does it matter? People he's worked for. People he's hit. Mostly government, but there are a few cartels of various stripes who would love to see his head on a pike." She moved to stand before him, mere inches separating them. "He will not be hurt… well not anything dangerous. I fully expect to walk away with bruises at the very least."

"Christ." Darien didn't want to deal with this. They were going to have to walk right into the inferno and just pray all of them made it to the other side with minimal damage. He cupped her cheek with a free hand. "Just tell me this is going to work."

She turned her head and kissed his palm before responding. "Of course it's going to work, I'm brilliant, remember?"

He kissed her on the forehead. "All these geniuses in one place, I should hope so."

 


	7. Chapter 7

"The bridge is too obvious and would be too difficult to prevent an airstrike even if they don't dare risk damaging the bridge itself," Mason stated, pushing that folder aside.

"You're assuming they're not willing to take the bridge down to get to you," Jarod pointed out, sounding far too serious for Darien's taste.

"Oh yay." Darien mock-cheered. "How about less exposed?"

"Well, I have the downtown plan, but it puts lots of civilians at risk unless we do it in the dead of the night, which kind of ruins the point of the whole shebang," she said in a droll tone.

"But is a viable option, truthfully," Jarod stated as he looked over that particular file. "These are quite detailed."

"Can we even maintain a perimeter in that scenario?" Mason asked, looking over at Alyx.

"Yes. Easily, no, but it can be done," she assured them. "I want to do this with minimal staff, there's only so many people I'm willing to risk and fewer that I trust to pull this off. I want to keep most of the Agency guys running interference, not in the thick of things."

"But if we make it too easy they won't buy it, too hard they won't come out to play." Darien looked over the selection of files. "So what about the docks. Split the difference. Yeah, we'll have to cover the water, but it's public enough without snarling downtown traffic. We just have to make it look like we've arranged a boat ride for him is all."

"Which can easily be done," Alyx assured him. "Mason, what say you. This is your death scene we're choreographing after all."

He drank down a portion of the beer next to his hand looking over the choices again. She had listed the pros and cons for each location, rough positioning and manpower and how they intended it to go, though once things had been set into motion what would actually happen would be anyones guess. There was only so much control they could force on the scenario. "How far are you willing to go? Will you kill to make this work?"

"To save your life or anyone on our side? Yes," she answered without hesitation. "I will do whatever is necessary to make this go our way."

Mason nodded slowly, but was looking at Darien, not Alyx. "What?" he asked. "This is not my first rodeo, you know."

"And you've still not had your red test," Mason stated.

"Because he doesn't need one. He's never going to be a traditional field agent and you know it." Alyx's voice was tight. "If push comes to shove, yes, but if he's doing his job right it should  _never_  come to that."

Darien began confused, but caught up quickly with what they were not saying aloud. "You want to know if I can kill someone if needed? Have you seen me Quicksilvermad?"

"Darien, you don't need to worry about this. You-" Alyx made a valiant effort to intercede, which Darien ran right over the top of.

"No, I've never killed someone on orders. So what? Not like she-" he stuttered to a halt at the look in her eyes.

"Work, D. I leave it at the door. No, I have not had an official red test. Have I killed in the field? Yes. Am I an assassin? No. And I have no intention of taking on that role for real."

She seemed to be telling the truth and could remember back in Cabo when working with Arnaud that she would only do character assassination, refusing even while under the influence of her darker side to kill for money. Injure and maim, yeah, but not kill. Though with her hacking skills a character assassination would probably be worse for some. He sucked in a breath and blew it out to a slow count of ten, the eyes of the two other men in the room burning into him, waiting to see how he handled this. "Neither of us is very traditional when it comes to the spy business."

"Neither is the Agency," Jarod pointed out. "If you can get through your life and this job without having to kill anyone, by all means do so, but if push comes to shove…"

"I'll shoot first and have the shakes later," Darien stated, knowing it was the truth. If it were someone he cared about versus some bastard trying to hurt them, he'd shoot and aim to kill.

"But you let Arnaud go," Mason pointed out, voice soft, curious.

Alyx snorted.

"Yeah, but trust me when I say death would have been far kinder than what she did to him for me." He looked over at her. "You never want to get on her bad side, trust me on that one."

"So, I've gathered," Mason stated drily. "The docks works for me. Fake boat ride, but how are we actually going to get me out of here?"

"Haven't decided yet. Need to nail down all the details possible first, which we can now do." Alyx stacked the four rejected plans and set them aside. "Research time, boys. Jarod if you would-"

She was interrupted by her cell phone trilling, a tone Darien didn't immediately recognize. She glared at it for an instant then answered with a "S'up, Drake?"

Whatever was being said caused her to frown deeply. "Hold up, Quentin, I'm putting you on speaker."

She lay her phone on the table and hit a button. "Start over."

" _Alyx, I have reason to believe the truth is out about Perdue."_

"What truth is that?" Darien asked, dread curling up in a hard lump in his belly.

" _That he's your father,"_ Drake stated, making it clear he'd known for some time now and that booting him from the office the other day had been pointless.

"How?" Darien growled, wanting to know who let that cat out of the locked bag so he could hurt him.

It was Alyx who responded. "Royce would have the most to gain. Though it could have been any of Perdue's handlers. They all knew the truth. What's the fallout so far?"

" _The safe house has been compromised. Can I hope Perdue is secure?"_

Alyx glanced at the man in question with a smirk. "Yes, you can. Anyone hurt?"

" _No, thankfully. We took your advice and used the recordings, no one was in the building when it was breached and the structure is still sound."_  Drake sounded as relieved as Alyx looked.  _"They will be coming after Darien."_

"Shit," Darien muttered. "To kill me, or what?"

"Capture, most likely. They'll try to use you to draw him out. Get him to fall on his sword to save you." Alyx tapped a finger on the table top. "Thanks, Drake. I'll call you on the secure line when we've finalized our plans."

" _Works. It'll need to be soon. They're coming in from all over and more will move now that this news has leaked out."_

"Drake, we need to be leaky too. Make it clear they are estranged and that D is not likely to give a great flying fuck about daddy dearest. Same for Perdue. Tell the world he walked out on his family and left them high and dry. That coming here, now had nothing to do with reconciliation and everything to do with my takedown of Royce."

Jarod nodded at her off the top of her head planning. The more disinformation out there the better. Lies, half-truths, real truth didn't matter. The more confusion the better for their side.

" _Will do. Be careful, you two. And set your security to high. If there is the slightest chance they can find your location-"_

"Understood. We'll take extra precautions," Darien cut in, not needing the lecture.

" _Good enough."_  And with that the line went dead.

Alyx looked at each of the men in turn. "Our names are in no way connected with this house, or the sale. The phone Drake used is one of my encrypted ones, so unless there was a parabolic mike involved that could get through the jammers running at the office, no one heard that conversation but us. We are as secure here as we can be."

"I've no doubt of that," Mason said. He glanced over at Darien. "I would not let them hurt you, I want you to know that."

Darien sighed softly. "I find that hard to believe given all the crap that has happened to me," he groused. Yeah, he was still mad in some ways, no matter how much he understood his dad's reasoning for staying away. The fact that he  _had_  still rankled.

"Son-"

Darien shook his head cutting off whatever placating words his father had intended to say. "Not the time, I know." He ran his hands through his hair in frustration. He'd tried to let it go the last few days, but every now and then his dad would say something and the anger, and pain and loss would come right back and since he was who he was he tended to snap and then go sullen. He didn't have time to pout and pound the walls, he needed to just suck it up and deal with it. If things went well he and his dad would have the time to work it out later. "Do we have an exit plan?"

"Yes and no," Alyx answered. "Ultimately, Jarod will be getting your father out of town. Where to even I do not know. The getting to the midway point will be handled by moi."

"And I can't know where he's going," Darien grumbled, understanding that what he didn't know he couldn't spill to anyone else.

Jarod shrugged. "I don't see why not. We'll probably head back east. He has family there I thought he might like to meet."

Alyx's eyes went wide for a long moment before sighing in obvious resignation.

"Family? Who the hell do we know back… Oh. Crap. You are insane, Jarod," Darien told him, and given he was currently the resident expert in that mental condition, he'd be the one to know. "Why would you do that?"

"Really? You have to ask that? Are you going to tell me he's not her father-in-law in all but a legal sense?" Jarod said this with a straight face as Darien frowned and Mason looked more than a little confused.

Alyx snorted, damn near spraying the beer she'd just drank all over the three men. "He's not wrong and... and truth be told I will abuse every resource I have to protect them. Why not let your dad acclimate back into the real world with people who won't look at him sideways." She turned to Mason. "If that's okay with you."

Mason looked honestly surprised. "You would do that? Open your home to me? Put your children at risk for me?"

Darien was shocked at the choked up tone in his father's voice, and it took him a long moment to realize that his father had had no one for a very long time. Staying away from all of those who might care about him for fear of putting them in harms way. And now… now here was this veritable stranger opening her home and family to him for no more reason than she considered him part of that family. Granted, with her gifts she had insight into what kind of man he really was, but she had obviously judged him worthy.

"At risk?" Alyx repeated, almost sounding offended. "If this goes like we want you won't be you when you arrive there. You can stay a few days or weeks and take the time to figure out what you want to do for the rest of your life, up to and including being nothing more than a doting grandpa to my hellions."

Mason looked from her to Darien and back again. "That serious are you?"

She nodded.

"But you won't marry him?" Mason questioned, clearly wondering why she'd claim family, but not be willing to make it official.

Darien sighed at the sudden look of pain in her eyes even if it touched no other part of her face. "Dad, there are reasons, valid ones and her wanting to be here is worth more than any piece of paper."

Mason sat there silent for several minutes, watching both of them with care before he spoke. "If the two of you are happy, then that's all that matters. This life you two are leading is difficult enough, there is certainly no need make the relationship any more challenging than necessary." He rubbed the top of his head, making his hair stand up in a manner eerily similar to his son's. "Is there any chance I'll be able to get back out to the farm?"

Alyx frowned slightly. "Maybe? I will make certain you get a chance to speak to her again even if it's via video. Going out there at this juncture might put her at too much risk."

"True," Mason agreed with a nod, though he still looked unhappy. "Damn it. I was hoping avoid a mess like this, but it would appear we have no choice."

"None worth bothering with," Jarod stated. "The plan we have worked out," he gave a nod to Alyx who had masterminded the majority of it, "stands the best chance of success."

Mason nodded ever so slightly. "I know, but I prefer being in control of the situation. They've taken that away from me."

Alyx went to him and set a hand on his shoulder. "You will have it back, and when you are ready, you can give us the tools to get back at them… if you wish."

He turned to her. "I'm a soldier, I follow orders. I'm usually not too big on the whole vengeance thing. However, any bit of information that will help keep you and Darien alive I will gladly give to you."

"Works," Darien said, not too thrilled with the turn the conversation had taken. He wanted to, somehow, incorporate his dad into his life, but not as just another source, and yet here Jarod and Alyx were plotting to turn him into an instant grandpa, giving him a family that didn't involve his own son.

It wasn't fucking fair.

"Dare, we are not stealing him from you."

He snapped his head around to glare at her. Of course she heard those thoughts. Of course she'd be upset by them. And of course he'd feel like an idiot for thinking them in the first place once he took a moment to distance himself from the personal. "I know," he barked without taking the time to curb his ire.

"Son, if I could stay I would." Mason looked over at Jarod. "Perhaps another location would be better. Newfoundland is nice this time of year."

Darien shook his head and sighed heavily. "No. I'm just being selfish."

"No, you're not. You just want to be with your family," Jarod stated, sounding oddly morose. "I fully understand that." He cocked his head slightly. "I'm pretty certain you'll get your chance once things settle down."

Mason nodded in complete agreement. "No more running, Darien. I don't how much of a father I can be, but we'll figure it out."

"Better than nothing, I guess."

Alyx thwapped him on the arm. "Stop that. Mr. Depressing over here. He's coming back even if I have hunt him down and drag him here myself." She glanced over at Mason, "Though I doubt that will be necessary."

"It won't be," Mason said in a blatant attempt to placate his son.

Darien's frown only deepened.

"Why is this so hard for you?" Mason asked of his son. "You didn't know I was around till recently, so why does it matter?"

Darien stalked away, running his hands through his hair in clear frustration. "I don't know." He twisted about to glare at his father. "I shouldn't give a flying fuck about you, and yet…"

"You still see him with the eyes of a five year old looking up to his god," Jarod observed, as if he had dealt with the same issues.

Given what little Darien knew about his life, the man might very well have. He nodded slowly, not certain what to say.

"Your view of him will always be colored by your memories, no matter if they are true or created by your perception only." Jarod looked from one man to the other. "It'll take time for that to change… for both of you, but, I promise you, it will."

Alyx shifted over to Jarod and set a comforting hand on his arm, and for once Darien felt no jealousy. Jarod was family and he  _hurt_. Hell, his family was even more messed up than Darien's.  _Her_  family, he had to remind himself. People she had never met and quite possibly never would. Little wonder Jarod had grasped onto the new family she had offered him with no strings and with every bit of trust, and Jarod had flourished in it. Even Darien could see the difference.

"Darien-" Mason began.

Darien shook his head. "Her family is my family," he glanced over at Jarod, "all of them and the reverse should be true as well." He stuffed his hands into his back pockets and faced his father. "Sorry, I'm being a selfish shit."

Alyx snickered. "No, you are not. You're being human. And it's nothing you should apologize for." She went to him, bounced up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. "Now, Jarod and I have plotting to do so we will take over my office and the two of you can drink and talk." She turned to Mason. "Really talk."

She grabbed a couple beers from the fridge, while Jarod closed her laptop and picked it up; the two of them left the room without another word.

Silence reigned for several long minutes before Mason screwed up the courage to break it. "I could use another beer myself."

Darien nodded, going to the fridge and grabbing a pair of them. He walked past his dad, going outside to sit on one of the chairs, placing both bottles on the table. He popped the tops off of both then waved at his father. "Sit. We might as well do as she suggests or neither of us will hear the end of it."

Mason shrugged and sat, pulling the bottle closer, but not drinking. "I'm not sure what's left to say. You're a grown man, Darien, you don't really have any need of me… of a father, and, more, you don't really want it."

Darien wanted to argue, wanted to feel offended or angry, but in some ways his dad was right. He didn't have any need for a father figure. Had no reason to look up to either the total stranger before him or the remains of the dad he had clung to for so many decades, a fallacy of his young mind and wish fulfillment over long years.

And yet… there remained this part of him that wanted nothing more than to have his father be proud of him and what he had done, or what he would do in the future. But for that to happen he would need to give up his preconceived image of his father and be willing to get to know the man he had become. They both needed to do that, but it would not be easy.

"I.. I'm not sure what to say," Darien muttered under his breath. "I've never been real big on the talking things out thing." Well, that had been true, until Alyx.

"Me either," Mason admitted, drinking some of the beer to cover the discomfiture he clearly felt. "Your mom always wanted to talk once things started going bad, but since there was so little I could tell her…"

"You told her nothing, which just made the whole situation worse," Darien finished, the answer obvious. He and Alyx had some of the same issues early in their relationship, with him being the one wanting answers and her unable to give them. Yeah, he'd played the part of the whiny girlfriend wanting to talk things out. He still sucked at it, as most guys did, but Alyx had been right as usual; he and his dad needed to sort this out before they were forced to go their separate ways.

"I guess… I guess I just want to know if you actually want to spend time getting to know me, who I am now." Darien ducked his head, trying to not let the hope creep into his voice or onto his face, trying to make it seem as if he didn't care one way or another even though he most certainly did.

His dad kept it simple. "Yes, I do."

Darien let out the breath he'd been unconsciously holding and raised his head to meet his father's eyes, his look so serious that Darien damn near shivered in reaction. He nodded slowly. "Cool. Figure it out as we go, I s'pose."

Mason chuckled. "Sounds like a plan. Just no relationship advice, I guarantee mine will be wrong."

Darien snorted, the amusement real. "Yeah, I think me and Alyx can handle it. Thanks."

"No problem. So anything you want to know while I'm here?" Mason leaned back in the chair looking comfortable for the first time all evening.

Darien nodded. "Yeah, your favorite dish."

Mason looked appropriately confused. "Uh, what?"

Darien's lip twitched. "For Thanksgiving. We best start planning now else Grams and Alyx will take it over and there goes beer and football for the two of us."

Mason burst out laughing. "True enough. I'll admit to being partial to sweet potatoes with marshmallows toasted on top. Think that can be arranged?"

Darien nodded, grinning. "I'm certain of it."

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

" _While all deception requires secrecy, all secrecy is not meant to deceive." Modern philosopher Sissela Bok had a keen grasp on lies and deception, which had a definite place in my life as both a thief and spy. That said I expected to be the one telling lies, not the one being lied to._

 

The room was still dark when Darien opened his eyes. He lay still, not certain what had caused him to awaken so long before the dawn. He could smell salt water and hear the faint crash of waves, which meant something had to be open. Window or balcony door were the only available options in this room and while they did often sleep with the windows open they had not tonight. He rolled onto his side, not surprised to discover her half of the bed empty.

He sighed softly. Yeah, he'd hoped he'd get more than one night with her sleeping more than a couple hours, but had not really expected it. He glanced at the clock in the headboard, the lighted digital numbers revealing it to be 0230, mere hours after they had crawled into the embracing comfort of the bed and fallen into slumber. Well, he had anyway. It was quite feasible she had simply laid there, her mind unable to slow enough to allow her to actually sleep.

Usually she didn't give up her efforts quite so quickly.

He tossed off the covers and padded across the cool wood floor in his bare feet. The curtains at the french doors shifted in the night time onshore breeze. At least she'd remained nearby instead of heading downstairs to her geek-cave. He stopped in the doorway to see her leaning on the railing, chin balanced on her hands as she seemed to gaze out across the yard. As he came around her he realized her eyes were closed, her face a mask of deep concentration and concern.

"Sweets?" he asked cautiously, not wanting to disturb whatever was going on in her mind at the moment. It could be life or death for all he knew.

She shuddered, straightened and opened her eyes to meet his. She said nothing, just moved to him and wrapped her arms about him, holding on as if for dear life. He froze for a moment before curling about her, cheek resting atop her head so that her curls tickled his brow and chin; arms pulling her in tight, giving her the support and comfort she seemed to need right now.

After several minutes he released her and stepped back just far enough to set his hands on her shoulders. "How bad?" He knew it had to have been a dream, though whether a Quicksilver dream or far more normal nightmare would have to be determined with some careful and cautious questioning.

She shrugged. "Bad enough to wake me up to escape it."

"Anything I can do?" He encouraged her to tip her head up so he could look her in the eyes. They always reminded him of cat's eyes in the darkness, not the iris shape, but the way they seemed to glow and reflect the minimal light available, which, admittedly, was probably an accurate comparison given her night vision had been tested as off the human charts. She saw things that no human had been intended to and had somehow remained sane through it all. Barely, now and then, but overall with her sanity and sense of self intact.

"Distract me until it goes away?" she suggested, her tone making him realize it would be to distract him as well. She did not want him to ask for details, did not want to tell him what the dream had been about. Or, more likely, whom the dream had been about.

"We're not going to get him out of this, are we?" Not that the odds had been all that great to begin with, but he'd had hope that they would pull off a miracle and save the day like they usually managed to do.

She looked up at him in confusion. "Your dad?" Darien nodded. "He'll be fine," she assured him. "Jarod being nearby screws with my head, is all. Lots of memories swirling about in here," she tapped the side of her head, "and not all of them are mine. His life before he escaped is one I would wish on no one and fear will happen to my kids if things go sideways."

Darien felt like an idiot. Yeah, his dad might be the mission they were most focused on, but there was so much more going on at the same time. Alyx poking sticks into some very nasty hornet's nests; Jarod, still on the run from The Centre, in town, which would bring his trackers, that Miss Parker, here eventually. Darien had no clue how Alyx kept all the threads separate and prevented them from becoming tangled into one giant knot that would defy being anything but a whole ever again. Still she did, trying not to allow the lines between this and that to become blurred. She set goals, shoved the unneeded out of the way and focused on nothing more than moving from point A to point B to point C, etc.

They'd bought this house to give themselves and those they cared about a safe haven, but had clearly forgotten that having so many under one roof would impinge on her awareness no matter what. She could not block everything; dared not as it would be detrimental to her health. And right now with her trying to heal at an accelerated pace, she'd be pushing those connections even more than usual. With his dad it wasn't that big of a deal, but Jarod had a permanent attachment with her that neither of them could stop. Little wonder she dreamt of The Centre tonight.

"Want to go for a walk? The beach might be far away enough to let you disconnect for a while."

She shook her head. "You need to sleep."

"So do you," he countered. He could feel that need burning through her, though her mind clearly had refused to settle and allow it. "You need an off switch." He kissed her on the tip of her nose and was rewarded with a tiny smile.

"Tell me about it," she muttered. "I could drug up, I suppose. That'd get me a few hours of unconsciousness."

"But not any real sleep." He stepped away, settling on one of the lounge chairs they'd put out here. The rear balcony ran the length of the upper story, their bedroom overlooking the pool area and creating the covered area off the back of the house. For a second he let his mind wander to how he would decorate for the holidays. Tiny white lights outlining every inch of the rear balcony and first floor porch. The place would glow with white light, mimicking the shine of moonlight off snow covered ground.

"D," she laughed. "Christmas decorations?"

He ducked his head. "Hey, it'll be the first Christmas in  _our_  home. I want to create some serious memories for us." Yeah, he had owned the house up in Cold Springs for a couple years, but he'd never considered it home, not like this house.  _Their_  home.

She walked over to stand before him, one hand wending its way into his hair. "Then may I suggest mixing blue in with the white and springing for those LEDs, they'll last longer and are smaller. And I should be able to rig a control system to them. Make 'em dance if you wish."

He smiled and leaned in to kiss the skin he bared above her right hip, where the scar from gunshot number one that she had acquired at the Agency was located. She taken the bullet protecting his back, making certain he'd get away unharmed and then had damn near bled out keeping him from going Mad on the drive home. She'd been watching his back from the moment they'd met and he could not be more thankful for that. To know there was someone who would be there for him no matter what, no matter when had made a huge impact on his life and sense of self.

What's more he wanted to be there for her. Wanted to be able to hold her and help her and grow old with her. And this was all personal.

Darien knew Bobby had his back and was his friend, same with Claire, but outside of work their connections lessened. Yes, they were friends, yes they hung out and did stuff outside of work together, and, yes, he loved them, but he wasn't  _in love_  with them. They were part of his life, but not the biggest part.

Alyx had him, mind, heart and soul.

And right now she needed him. Needed him to listen and pay attention and not be what she had asked for: a distraction.

"You need to talk. Question is: can you talk to me?" He slid the shirt higher, lips trailing along the curve of her waist up to her ribs. A bit of distraction to ease the sting of facing what needed to be done.

She sighed softly. A hand curling about the back of his neck and resting there, just enough energy leaking from her to make the hairs nearby to stand up in response. "But I want distraction." Her other hand found his cheek and lifted his head, lowered hers to press her lips against his.

He allowed it for a few minutes, the touch light and gentle and teasing, but not what she truly needed. He pulled away first and buried his face against her stomach, wrapping his arms about her and pulling her closer. "Talk. Please."

"Don' wanna," she mumbled into his hair as she folded about him, enjoying the slow, delicate movements of his hands across her skin.

He debated the merits of pulling away completely versus tickling the conversation out of her, but decided against both. The steady contact might be just what she needed to tell him why she'd awoken from a dream that disturbed her enough to leave bed and seek solace in the night air. "Tell me anyway," he whispered against her skin, the shirt pushed up far enough for him to see the collection of scars she'd earned over the years. Sadly, most had been since coming to the Agency. They would fade in time, but not the memories. One hand skimmed across her upper back, the skin rippled and twisted beneath his palm. The result of yet another bullet, one that had shattered so completely that it had taken multiple surgeries to remove all the bits left behind.

She groaned softly as he dug his fingers in with enough force to gauge exactly how tense she had become, which was very. "I'm afraid," she admitted.

"Of what?" He continued his gentle manipulations with both hands and lips even as she became even more tense. Her back feeling like steel beneath his fingers.

"Of becoming more like Jarod." Now that was unexpected. Jarod had been instrumental in creating a solution to her persona issues. The control program gone and those other hers absorbed, the skills each had intact and usable by Alyx. So much had changed during those weeks, and she'd told him so very little of what had actually occurred there. Of what she had been forced to do in order to survive and not give The Centre any more than she had to.

"Would that be such a bad thing?" Granted he did not know the man well, but Alyx trusted him and had treated him like family almost from the get go. That had been good enough for Darien. Once he'd gotten past his jealousy issues, that is.

"He's a good man at heart, but he's also… dangerous. The things he's capable of…" She stiffened for a long moment and he waited patiently for her to continue, sensing that prompting her to go on would do the exact opposite. "They stripped away as much of him as they could and turned him into a human weapon. His sims have killed so many people…"

"Which is not his fault," Darien reminded her, needlessly he was sure, but he'd said it more to prove that he believed it to be the truth as well.

"I know. But he's standing on a ledge and I worry that one day he'll fall and then the whole world will discover what he truly is. A benevolent dictatorship it would not be." She sounded truly worried for her brother and he couldn't blame her. She had stood on that very ledge herself and knew from experience what happened when one fell.

Darien had never been an idiot, and being with the Agency and Alyx had opened his eyes to a reality that far more belonged in the pages of a science fiction novel than his life, so it didn't take him long at all to follow the dotted line she'd laid out before him.

"And what about you? Do you still stand on that ledge?"

She shuddered in his hold as if she had hoped he would not figure it out, or at least not quite so quickly. "Yes, I do. But I have help nearby if I fear I may jump."

"So does Jarod." He looked up at her and she cupped his cheeks in her hands. "He's part of you, are you telling me you wouldn't know if something happened that might push him over?"

She closed her eyes, a pained look crossing her delicate features. "Knowing does not mean I'd get there in time to help."

Ah, so that was her true concern. Losing any chance of a safety net. And it had always been a risk, though less so now that she no longer had programming fucking with her mind. Then again with the limiter turned off, no one knew what she might be capable of. Splitting California off from the rest of the US did not seem quite so impossible. But then it became not a could she but a would she, and he did not think she would. Well, not without good reason, anyway.

"Sweet thing, and this is not me dismissing your concerns, I promise, but shouldn't you be talking to him? If this is what you're picking up from him then it is clearly something he's concerned about, if only subconsciously." He sat up straight to give her a quick kiss. "He's not used to having family that cares, or one that lives in his head. He will not be angry with you."

She frowned ever so slightly. "His life is so much rubble that he's trying to piece back together, only he never saw the blueprint. He was raised in a box, literally, and spent the vast majority of his life being other people." She sighed softly and turned away. "I don't want to chase him away."

Darien sat quietly for a few moments before answering. "Ever think he fears the same?" He shook his head when she snapped her head about to look at him in surprise. "You two are so alike it's eerie. And both so damaged because of what you are."

She snickered. "I could say the same about you and your dad. You two have some identical mannerisms, which means you latched onto them when you were very young."

"And how did this become a discussion about my family probs and not yours?"

"I know you're fighting that image you have in your head of him, right? Trying to reconcile it against the reality?"

He nodded, wondering where she was going with this line of thought.

"Ever think he has the same problem? He may have been watching, but that's not the same as knowing why you made the choices you did." She shifted to grasp both his hands within her own. "He's a good man, Darien, he's simply afraid that he doesn't deserve any happiness after all he has done. Line of duty or not. Some sins cannot be exorcised so easily."

Oh, now if that wasn't an interesting observation. And it was true enough he supposed. Darien had his share of regrets, though few involved his former profession, which he had loved doing, but for mistakes when it came to family. Kevin had hated that Darien was a thief; so Darien had kept his life as far away from his brother's as possible to not have to hear the interminable lectures of how he was wasting all he was capable of.

"Huh, wonder if Kev knew I was the smart one?" Darien asked softly, not expecting a response.

"Of course he did," Alyx stated. "Why else would he spend so much time extolling on your lack of motivation."

Darien felt stunned. She had known that Kevin had known and never thought to mention it to him. "Alyx-"

"D, his last words to you kinda give it away. Plus we talked a bit when he visited. He was trying to help, he just went about it the wrong way. Admonishment never works with you, you get all stubborn and rebellious, but challenge you? You light up like a Christmas tree and dive in with enthusiasm." She tapped him on the nose.

Her words held the truth in them and he could now see how that very knowledge had been used to manipulate him over the years. Hell, that was how Peter had gotten him into college working towards a medical degree. He'd liked it well enough, found it interesting if boring, but the great shining star Kevin Fawkes and constantly being compared to him once discovered he was the younger sibling made that limited interest wane quickly. The challenge of getting into an uncrackable safe far more his cup of tea.

"Great, do all my friends manipulate me this way?" He knew he sounded angry and discouraged, but she didn't allow it to faze her.

"Probably. We all try to coach things in ways that'll get others to do what we want. Bring up his meds and Bobby folds instantly. Claire thinks she's always right, we just have to let her believe she is." She cocked her head slightly to the side. "Shall I go on?"

Darien wanted to argue with her, but every word she had said was nothing but the truth and he'd used those manipulations himself more than once. And, he had to admit, he'd used what he knew of Alyx to encourage her to do what he wanted many times. It wasn't good or bad, it just was. Something that happened when you actually learned who a person was deep down inside.

He let his irritation flow away like the tide ebbing back out to sea. "Think you can sleep now?"

"Maybe?" she responded, lowering her head to run her cheek alongside his, the stubble surely rough against her skin.

He shifted back drawing her down onto the lounge chair with him. Her curled between his legs, head laying on his chest. "Rest, at least. I'll chase the dreams away for a while."

"But what about you," she mumbled, her body already relaxing in his gentle hold.

"I'll take a nap later. Now hush and sleep." His set his chin atop her head, a gesture of comfort that had become common for him and one he knew would help ease the chaos swirling in her mind.

She sighed softly, but didn't comment, the beat of his heart acting as a focus, like counting sheep, and allowing her mind to clear for a the few precious seconds needed for her to slip into the Land of Nod.

He felt anything but tired, her words bringing up serious concerns for his father. His family, his life was also rubble, much of which he'd created himself. How was he supposed to build it back up when so many of the pieces were gone?

Darien didn't know, but hoped that the two of them could maybe do it together.

 


	8. Chapter 8

 

 

Mason ducked his head down to say something in the ear of his mother while Darien watched from outside on the porch through one of the windows. Alyx sat next to him in the deep shadows that had begun to form as the sun reached it's apex overhead. The buzzing of insects loud so far from the city. Similar to the hiss of tires on pavement; white noise that she could use to focus or clear her mind, giving her a few moments of peace and mental quiet.

He could only wonder which she had chosen this time. She appeared to be calm and at ease, but something… some underlying feeling that was not his seemed to suggest otherwise. And that… that worried him, if only a little.

She had pulled off a frickin' miracle getting his dad a few hours with Grams before shipping him off to the east coast. They had planned very carefully and made certain Madeline was protected without being obvious about it. Hobbes just up the road in and unmarked non-Agency vehicle watching for any surprises. Sadly there was only a single main road that would get them to Grams' farm, which had both good and bad points. Easy to watch. Hard to hide. Luckily, chatter had indicated that while the connection to Darien had been discovered the one to Madeline had not. And even if it had how could an eighty year old woman be a factor in this game as anything other than bait?

When the final moves in this particular game happened he would be the one playing that part. They would follow him to find the location where Mason was to be shipped off to freedom.

"Thank you for this," he said softly, turning to look at Alyx who appeared to be dozing in the drowsy noon heat.

She shrugged without opening her eyes. "I said I'd try, didn't I? Besides, she deserves a proper goodbye this time. And to know it's not forever."

"And that means I can't thank you?" He got up and walked over to her, leaning down to kiss her, fingers tracing lightly along her cheek. He smiled as he pulled away, the pleasure in her slowly opening eyes a living thing that he wanted to keep creating for as many years as possible. They'd a had a comparatively quiet twenty-four-ish hours, firming up plans and making arrangements. Jarod had everything set at his end, ready to whisk Mason away once his death had been confirmed and the news spread about enough to make any lingering concerns vanish.

"Thank me when it's over and he's away safe and sound," she told him, without losing the quiet happiness in her eyes. A good trick that, he had to admit. "So, hear there's been turkey day plotting going on behind my back."

Darien ducked his head, smiling. "Some, yeah. You didn't think Grams was going to let another holiday go by without a family event happening did you?"

The light in her eyes sputtered and died at those words. "No, I suppose not."

The hurt in her voice was a living thing and he wanted to smack himself in the forehead for his stupidity. His family were either dead or torn apart by circumstance - till very recently anyway - not that there were many left. The leaves remaining on his family tree few and wilting. But hers… she had family everywhere and could see almost none of them. Just a select few who had been deemed capable of protecting themselves should the wolves at her door turn their hungry gaze upon them.

And the likelihood of her being able to spend a few hours, never mind an entire day with them remained well out of the realm of possibility. She would never put them at risk, not unless the danger in not seeing them outweighed that of doing so. He feared there would come a day when she would need to announce to the world who and what she was, to make herself the ultimate target to protect those she cared for most. And that list seemed to grow longer every single day as more and more about who she was and how she came to be was revealed.

In mock offense he said, "What my family not good enough for you?"

She started, taking his words seriously. "That is not what I meant. I just want it to be  _our_  family. All of it. Together. And I'm realistic enough to know that might never happen." She turned away, missing him drop the fake indignation he'd worn in hopes of getting her to lighten up, which had failed miserably.

He crouched down before her. "Darlin' I was kidding. And… and you know I want it to be  _our_  family as well. Hell, if you want to tell your kids tomorrow I would back you one hundred percent and do whatever it took to make it work." He grabbed her hand, kissing the palm, before looking back up at her. "Grams likes you, which is pretty damn cool, if you ask me, and I want you to like my family. Small and broken as it is."

"Did you just misquote Stitch to me?"

He smiled slightly. "Would I do that?"

"If you thought it might work, yes," she stated, still not giving him an inch.

He hadn't intended to hurt her. Hell, he simply wanted her to be part of his family as much as he had become of hers. Still wanted to marry her, but knew he needed to be patient. At least now he understood why she wanted no part of that iconic institution and that allowed him to take that necessary emotional step back and savor what they had and were trying to build in the here and now. And here she was putting up walls, just like his dad had warned him about, because he'd made an innocent comment that she'd chosen to take out of context.

Almost as if she wanted to start a fight. Which meant distraction. Which meant something else had to be going on, though he had no idea what it might be.

"Alyx, what is going on?" He squatted down next to her, not letting go of her hands, and not permitting her to hide from him. "Why do you not want to… like my family?"

She glared at him for a long moment. "Why do you assume I don't?"

" 'Cause it seems like you're looking for any excuse to not be anywhere near them." Which suddenly make perfect sense in light of more recent train of thought. If she stayed away from  _her_  family to protect them, then she would do the same for his. "You can't isolate yourself forever. You need more than just me."

She turned away, eyes slipping closed, a mask of pain sliding onto her face for a moment before she got ahold of herself and put her poker face in place. "If that's what it takes to keep family safe, that is exactly what I will do."

"And if they go after me again? Are you going to leave me? Leave the Agency to protect us?"

"If there were no other choice? Yes, I would." She faced him, freed one hand to cup his cheek, thumb brushing lightly across his lips. "I will do  _anything_  to protect my family. Even if it means being alone and only watching from afar."

"A difficult choice. I should know."

Darien turned his head to see his father standing behind the screen door, watching them and obviously having heard at least part of their discussion.

"How about convincing her there's another way?" Darien requested, wondering how plaintive he sounded. He'd been an idiot the last few weeks, but they needed to work through this to keep moving forward and not get caught up in the little disagreements that would happen.

"If there were another way don't you think she would have done it by now?" Mason stepped through the door and onto the porch, his expression unreadable.

"Not necessarily." Darien glanced over at Alyx for a moment, who sat there stoically. "Sometimes it's easier to maintain the status quo than make a dramatic change." Their moving in together had been a huge step forward for her. She still feared what she could do and had been concerned that living in close proximity would put him in danger. That she would hurt him unintentionally. Not an unreasonable concern, and it went both ways. He still had violent nightmares and had done his share of damage to her since they had begun sharing bed space.

"There is nothing easy about my life," she grumbled. "They are safer away from me."

"Because of what you do or what you are?" Mason asked far too astutely for Darien's taste. Then again, maybe, though without special powers, he could relate.

"Both? Until I'm certain that black ops agency that wants me and mine are out of the picture, I have to be out of my family's lives."

"And if they make a move to take them?" Mason questioned, clearly referring specifically to her children.

She grimaced. "They'll regret it."

Mason nodded slowly. "Yes, I imagine they will. Any information I have is at your disposal."

"Thank you," she responded, poking Darien in the chest.

He got the hint, stood and backed off so she could get up. She went to Mason, hand out, which he grasped firmly and drew her into a hug. They held still for a long moment, his dad leaning in close to whisper something in her ear, before both pulled away. He looked over her shoulder at Darien. "I think it's time to go."

Alyx turned about nodding. "I'll alert Hobbesy that the package is on the move."

Darien rolled his eyes. "All this code phrase crap is stupid. If they are listening it's not like they won't figure it out."

Mason chuckled, "Ever think that's why we use the stupid code phrases? To annoy those listening in?"

Darien laughed softly. "That would make a hell of a lot more sense." He turned to Alyx. "What about eyes in the sky?" Perhaps too late to ask that given they could have tracked them out here using them, but better late than never.

"Handled," she assured him. "They will see nothing I don't want them to."

"You have that much power?" Mason asked.

She simply cocked an eyebrow.

"You meant that rhetorically, right?" Darien found the look of realization that crossed his father's face highly amusing. Power? Alyx had it in spades. He took a mental step back at that. She didn't need to ask permission to re-task a satellite or two. She just had to hack in and they would dance to her every whim. Much like she had offered with the Christmas lights.

He felt the sudden need to sit down.

Why was she still here? She didn't need the Agency or the Official or any of the trappings that went with it. Hell, he could only wonder if the Official realized that he only ran the show because she permitted it.

He turned to find her gazing at him, a hint of a smile on her face and he understood why.

Him.

Darien Fawkes.

Thief. Con-man. Eternal fuck-up, if you believed the rumors.

A less than ordinary guy who'd fallen into an extraordinary life.

She wanted… needed something normal in her life. Wanted to be nothing but ordinary and live a simple life. To love and be loved. And he gave that to her, at least a little. Gave her something to cling to that was real. That had nothing to do with spies and genetic experiments and black ops agencies.

He was her sole connection to the real world.

He kept her grounded.

And, if he had to think about it, she did the same for him.

Little wonder he'd fallen for her so very hard.

"D? You okay?"

He blinked and refocused on her. Based on the look on her face she had no clue what had just gone on in his mind, for which he was eminently thankful. "What? Fine. I'm fine. We gonna get this show on the road?"

She narrowed her eyes for a second then nodded. "I'll pull the car around."

She strode away, Darien's eyes following her until out of sight around the side of the house where they'd parked the SUV.

Mason set a hand on his shoulder. "Are you all right?"

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

Mason tipped his head slightly to the side. "The look on your face. You realized something about her. Something important."

Darien ducked his head. "Yeah, I guess I did."

"What was it, if I may ask?"

Darien shrugged. "Me."

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

_Presbyterian minister and proponent of positive thinking, Frank Crane, taught us, "You may be deceived if you trust too much, but you will live in torment if you do not trust enough."_

_Trust had never been easy for me, given all the loss in my life and the lessons I'd learned as a thief, but with time I had learned to, at least a little, since coming to the Agency. Probably not the smartest thing given I'd traded criminals for spies._

_Seems like I was destined for torment either way._

"Where the hell are we?" Darien grumbled as he slowed down for the turn.

"Well, we're the green dot," his father responded, waving at the GPS mounted on the dash. They'd pre-programmed random routes to and from Grams's house, not even they had known which would come up until they hit go in order to keep from being tracked. Hobbes would join them at a checkpoint they had to go past to get back to the city - that lone main road they would inevitably end up on.

Darien sighed. "I know that and I've followed the irritating voice, but I have no clue where the hell we are and it's not like we haven't taken roundabout routes to get to the farm before." He glanced at the rear view mirror and his partial view of Alyx.

She leaned as far forward as the seatbelt would allow. "Uh, I'll admit to creating the list of options, but I let it do the choosing," she told them, which they already knew and didn't really help.

The voice began speaking again, telling him they would need to take a right in the near future. "So, do I follow the voice or find another route?"

She had her phone out, tapping on the screen. "Follow the voice for now. I'll double check the route… if I can get enough bars. Stupid mountains," she muttered, settling back into the seat, while Darien flipped on the blinker and took the turn as commanded, kicking up dust as the tires hit the poorly maintained surface. It was barely one step up from dirt and seemed to wend its way deeper into the hills instead of back towards the city.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he muttered.

They continued on for several minutes, Alyx grumbling imprecations in back, plainly her tech not working the way she wanted it to. Even she couldn't boost a nonexistent signal.

"Alyx?" Mason questioned, twisting about in his seat to look at her.

"I don't know. We're in a frickin' dead zone. I've texted Bobby, but he won't get it until I can get a signal out." She didn't sound overly concerned. "I vetted all the routes. It makes no sense that we'd end up out in boonie hell."

"Can the GPS be hacked?" Darien asked, slowing the SUV in case of surprises. Not that there was much out here. A barely two lane road edged by trees and brush that was far more brown than green.

"Well, it's not a smartphone, but yeah, it can. And can be done remotely."

"And they sent us someplace where we can't call for help," Mason stated, summing up their worst fear. "They knew where we were."

Which meant Grams must be in danger. "Shit," Darien growled softly.

"She's safe. There's been a detail watching her since after your dad's first visit. They will not harm her."

"I know," Mason told her. "We, however, may not be so lucky. We're probably driving into a trap."

"Oh yays," Darien said cheerlessly. "How about I make a U-ie and get us the hell out of Dodge?"

Mason shook his head. "Probably can't. I'm sure someone has blocked any potential escape route." He turned to look straight out the front window, the hills to either side seeming to converge not too far in the distance.

"We're running out of road here." Darien wanted to run away, to whip the SUV about and floor it; smashing through anything that blocked their way. "And options. We're not exactly prepared for a firefight." Too true. Alyx had her gun, and her abilities, of course, but that was pretty much it. They had wanted to go in under the radar, minimal personnel and weaponry, his Dad invisible the entire way, so there should have been no way for anyone outside of the Agency to know Perdue was anywhere but in the cage back at home base.

"When going through hell…" Mason suggested with a shrug of his shoulders. Not his first time stuck between a rock and a hard place for sure, but the first with his son. Darien had to wonder if that changed the situation at all for him.

"Keep going," Darien finished, mouth set in a grim line. They were in too deep already, now they would have to make it to the other side, preferably intact. From the rear he heard the sound of Alyx checking her gun. He knew she typically had two extra clips with her; fifteen rounds per clip, plus one in the chamber gave her forty-six chances to keep their asses intact. And maybe delay enough for backup to arrive.

"How long before Bobby realizes something is wrong?"

"Not soon enough. And then he has to find us." Alyx sounded as unthrilled as Darien currently felt.

"Can you contact him? The way you can Darien?" Mason asked, smart enough to remember that she always had options.

"I'll try. My connection to him is not like the one I have with Dare."

"Do it, Alyx. We're about to be backed into a corner and have no clue how many we're gonna be up against. Or what, for that matter. One RPG and this'll be over a lot sooner than I'd prefer." Darien slowed the car down even more, wanting to give her the time she needed to call for a rescue. He feared that's all it would be; a rescue from an untenable situation that would result in him losing yet more of his family. And if things went  _really_  bad, he could lose her too.

He adjusted the rear view mirror to keep and eye on her and watched as she unbuckled and moved into a lotus position, probably to help her focus. Hobbes tended to be resistant to her unless planned ahead of time, still not comfortable with someone other than himself in his head. Darien couldn't blame him, pairing a psychic with a paranoid had always caused friction, but Bobby had adapted and learned to make use of her abilities. He glanced back at her, eyes closed, face slack as she tried to find their partner and alert him to their potentially dire predicament.

They continued forward for all of five more minutes when the road ended at, of all places, a dam. The curving wall of concrete soaring above their heads. "Great. Just great."

The windows of the car were tinted dark except for the windshield, so whomever might be out there would have a limited view within the vehicle. Not that they had much to see. The dam. The hills to either side, both covered in desiccated plants. The tall grass at ground level would be more than enough to hide a crouching man or three or a dozen. He unbuckled and turned about, noting his father gazing out the windows with a sharp eye, looking for the danger they knew to be out there.

"Sweets, we need you." He reached out and set a hand on her shoulder, a signal that they needed her back now.

She opened her eyes slowly, blinking back to full awareness. "I got through… sort of. If he doesn't have the worst feeling of dread then I really suck at this."

Darien cracked a smile for her though worry churned deep in his gut. They were not going to get out of this intact without a hell of a lot of luck and the grace of a god he no longer believed in. "All our plans have gone to hell."

"Then we adapt," Mason said turning about to watch Alyx with care. "How many?"

She gave him a grim smile and nod, closing her eyes again. "Four. All armed. Two for distance, two for up close and personal."

"They know each other?" Darien asked, sounding surprised, He thought most of the hitmen sent after his dad were random, not drinking buddies.

"Not really. With so many after the same target it makes sense they'd encounter each other, even create… alliances if necessary." She opened her eyes. "Yakiro is here."

The SUV shifted then, the front left dropping as the tire blew. Probably with the help of a bullet. The report followed a moment later, echoing off the high walls of the dam. "What now?" Darien growled. "We're fucking sitting ducks."

"Out," she said, sliding to driver's side. "They're all on our right. This beast is armored and will give us some cover."

"Then what?" Darien groused as he grasped the door handle, preparing to slip out into the sunlight.

Another bullet hit, this time striking the passenger side of the front windshield, creating a spiderweb of cracks. Mason turned calmly to look at the damage. "Not armored enough for these bullets."

"So it would appear," Alyx agreed. "Out boys. I'll play bait and eliminate however many I can."

Mason reached out to set a hand on her arm. "You can't get the two on top of the dam. They're out of range."

"Then I'll have to encourage them closer, won't I?" She slid across the seat, opened the door and stepped out into the sun. The SUV a fair eight inches taller than her standing.

Two more impacts followed by impressive reports sent him and his father scrambling out to sit on the hard packed and hot ground. "Well this is familiar," he muttered.

Alyx snickered. "That explains the bullets holes in the van a couple months ago.

"Hey, it happens." Darien grinned for a moment, thankful she was trying to keep it light while they still could. "So, we just gonna sit here?"

"No." Alyx drew her gun, holding it with an ease that still surprised him as she moved towards the back of the vehicle. Another shot rocked the SUV, but towards the front like the previous ones. Alyx didn't even flinch, poking her head about the back end to get a lay of the land. When she shifted around the rear and out of view Darien wanted to grab her and yank her back, but held his place. She had the best chance of seeing what their real chances were.

A bullet whined past the back of the SUV, hitting the asphalt and creating a fair-sized crater in the surface.

"Shit," Alyx snarled. She fired off two quick shots earning a yelp in reaction. Though whether a close call or a hit Darien had no way of knowing.

The response that came was impressive to say the least. What sounded like a cannon to Darien's untrained ears fired several times rocking the SUV and spraying shattered glass atop he and his father when the bullets easily penetrated both sets of armored glass. He'd left the engine running for a potential quick getaway, but now it might just get them killed.

"Alyx," Mason barked over the ruckus. "We need to find better cover."

"On it," she responded, then fired off four more shots, which earned her a scream of pain that cut off after a few seconds. Silence reigned for the moment, even the local wildlife scattering.

"Can't you just blast them or something?" Darien would me more than happy to let her kill them if they got away alive and mostly intact. Glass cuts were survivable at this stage. Being next to this beast when it blew, not so much. The smell of gasoline had invaded his nostrils; one wrong move or lucky shot would set it aflame.

"Not with any accuracy at this distance. I could blast a hole in the dam, I suppose, but it'd wipe out the whole valley."

"Overkill," Mason stated. "We need to draw them out. You got one with certainty. If we lure them into your line of sight could you use your Jedi mind powers on them?"

She popped back around the end of the SUV, shoes wet with spilled fuel. "Not all at once."

Mason nodded slowly, clearly thinking hard about what to do. "Give Darien your gun. He'll lay down covering fire. You take them out one at a time, and we'll get away from this IED we're sitting next to."

"Works," she agreed without hesitation. She handed over the gun and spare clips to Darien, which he shoved into his back pockets. Not perfect, but would do. "Maybe a little invisibility to make you less of a target. I'll do your dad, give him a chance to get over to the crappy tree line behind us. Some decent sized rocks back there."

Mason snarked, "Decent sized for you maybe. I'll find something to hide behind, but if even one of them has thermals…"

"Then we're screwed as usual," Darien stated with a shrug. "We just need to hold out until Hobbes gets here with backup. We don't have to win. They don't have unlimited ammo any more than we do, right?"

"Right. Let's see what we can do to even the odds a bit." She reached across Darien to set a had on Mason's chest; the Quicksilver flowing quickly to cover him and make him vanish from sight. "You've got about ninety seconds," Alyx told him.

"Got it." They could hear him get to his feet and move off, the brush shifting out of his way as he hit the tall grass, headed towards the limited cover.

Darien followed suit, his time invisible also limited, but more than a mere ninety seconds. That said, if this took more than three segments to resolve this they would be in truly deep shit. He popped up at the hood of the car and fired two shots up at the dam, knowing they would hit nothing. He kept moving towards the dam, not staying in place for more than a few seconds.

Return shots came quickly from at least three directions. Three different sounds, echoing off the hills and the giant concrete wall, making triangulation a challenge at best.

Alyx, crazy-ass that she could be, stepped out into the open, completely visible, red hair twisted back into a messy bun, escaped curls waving like banners in the light breeze. A bullet pinged off the ground near her feet, the mid-sized boom one, but she didn't even flinch.

No, she just tipped her head slightly.

Movement caught his eye and he turned to see a person suddenly stand, rifle in his hands, at the top of a staircase that appeared to be an entrance to the dam itself. He lifted into the air, slammed into the door and then dropped to the landing and didn't move.

That was followed by the big boom. Darien flinched, the Quicksilver falling away, expecting Alyx to be the target. She wasn't.

The explosion that damn near deafened him proved the target to be the SUV. The pool of gasoline igniting and causing whatever fuel left in the tank to explode, sending debris and flames everywhere.

Alyx shifted to her left avoiding a piece of of burning metal that landed where she'd been standing a moment before. She turned to look at him, eyes wide.

Darien heard his father swear and shifted to see that the grass surrounding where his dad had chosen cover on fire, the breeze pushing the flames towards him forcing him to stand and run to keep from being trapped against the steep hillside.

Alyx twisted about, one arm stretching out in the direction of the fire, probably in an attempt to dampen it before the entire area exploded into flames. His dad kept moving headed for the limited cover on the opposite side of the road when a single shot rang out - that big boom - and his father's chest exploded into blood.

As if in slow motion Darien watched his father stop then fall backwards onto the dusty hard surface.

"No!" Darien screamed, the gun falling from his hand, as he stared in utter shock. All of this time and effort only to have it end like this. On some dusty back road in the middle of nowhere.

A figure stood up from the grass, pistol in one hand, a phone in the other. It took a moment, but Darien recognized Jarod in his guise of hitman. With a casualness that belied the danger Jarod walked over to Mason, phone held in such a way as to suggest he was taking pictures or video and stood over the man heaving for breath on the ground.

Darien knew Jarod could save his dad, so was shocked when he instead pointed the gun at his father's head and pulled the trigger. The single shot shockingly soft. The hitching breaths his father had been taking stopped, the body twitching once with the impact then becoming still. Too still.

Darien felt anger surge, his sight bleeding over to red as he moved, going for Jarod. Not caring that he was Alyx's brother. As far as Darien was concerned he was the man who killed his father. And that took the family card off the table.

He moved quickly, his mind a blur of nothing more than dealing with the son of a bitch that supplied the final blow to his father.

He came back to himself suddenly. His hands wrapped firmly about throat of Jarod, though not choking so much as squeezing and keeping him immobile so as to pound his head into the asphalt he lay upon.

Someone struck him repeatedly on the back, a voice fuzzed out by white noise shouted at him.

Fingers brushed along his neck followed by a zap of electricity, enough to make him yelp and and flinch away to end up lying next to Jarod clutching his head in pain. It didn't last more than a couple of minutes and he came back to himself with Hobbes, of all people, standing over him.

"Fawkes, you okay?"

Darien lay there staring up at clear blue sky above trying not to think about the fact that a few feet away lay his father. His dead father.

Anger and despair warred within him. "Where is he?"

"Who, Fawkes?"

"Jarod," he growled, fully intending on finishing the job on sending him to the hell he had clearly come from.

"Gone, Fawkes. Along with the other one the kid didn't flatten," Hobbes answered as he held out his hand to help his partner up.

Once upright he looked anywhere but the body lying on the ground a few feet away. Wanting a few moments more to not be forced into admitting the truth, to see the blood and pale skin and…

He choked back a sob.

He heard Alyx giving orders to the other agents who had arrived to fail being there in enough time to save Perdue, but it swiftly descended into white noise.

Without a word to anyone he turned and simply walked away.

 


	9. Chapter 9

The sun had gone down hours before. The debriefing, short as it was, had been a test of endurance for him. His answers minimal at best and little more than grunts at the worst. The Official had finally allowed them to leave once Drake had found the malware that had been loaded onto the GPS, which had sent them down that route that had led to… to…

He sidestepped that train of thought quickly. Not yet ready to face that truth in detail. He might never be able to.

No all he wanted to do right now was find the nearest dive bar and drown in it. Full on drunk with a violent and bloody fist fight on the side. Though he felt uncertain if bruises, if broken bones could drive the deep seated numbness that had invaded his soul away. Even the tiniest bit.

So he wondered how he had allowed Alyx to drag him out of the Agency and drive him home. Okay, so maybe he wasn't in the best state of mind and admittedly probably should not be driving, but it should be Bobby or Claire, or even Drake; not  _her._

She had failed. His dad was… He did that mental sidestep again. His dad would not be at the house. Would not be joining them for Thanksgiving. Would not be there for the first family Christmas in ages.

He would not be anywhere, but on a cold slab at Leavitt.

And that image proved to be too much for him and he whimpered out loud, the loss crashing upon him like a collapsing building during a massive quake. He wanted to crumple under the weight that pressed upon him from every direction, but he refused to allow it to break him. Not here, not now.

The car stopped and she encouraged him out of the vehicle and to come with her. He did, but more out of lack of anything better to do. Until he had the opportunity to get away from her he might as well trail along. Thankfully she'd barely spoken to him since she'd pulled him off Jarod.

Darien might very well say something irrevocable.

_And right now part of him really wanted to say something irrevocable._

The sound of her apartment door sliding open, distinctive as it was, brought him back around to the here and now.

"Why are we here?" he growled as he followed her into the oversized studio, the anger stronger than the confusion of being at the place she'd left behind to be with him.

She didn't say a word, just stepped further into the apartment leaving him to follow or not as he would see fit.

He glared at her back, part of him wanting to grab her, spin her about and demand to know why they were here. Why she had brought him to her, as far as he knew, former home, which should be barren, but instead currently had minimal furnishings suggesting that someone had been staying here for some time.

"What the…."

Two people stepped out of the kitchen; Jarod and - "Dad," Darien choked on the single word and rushed forward to embrace his father in a bone crushing hug. Tears he could in no way prevent squeezing past his tightly closed eyes to run down his cheeks.

His dad returned the hug, though not with quite the same level of enthusiasm.

"Darien, what's wrong?" Mason asked.

Darien stepped back, wiping the tears from his face. "What's wrong?" he echoed in utter confusion. "I watched you die."

Mason looked over at Alyx, who still stood next to the door, plainly unwilling to join in on the impromptu reunion,

Darien turned about to look at her. "Why didn't you tell me?" he snarled. "Why didn't you tell me you'd changed the plan, that it was all a fake out?"

She had the perfect blank look on her face and she simply shook her head. One of those masks she used to wear all the time firmly in place revealing nothing from within. He felt an instant to shock when he realized it had been there all along. Ever since the fatal blow had been delivered by Jarod.

Darien turned on Jarod next. "You were there, so you knew. You fired the kill shot. Hell, you took fucking pictures of it and you couldn't bother to let me in on the plan?"

Jarod looked to Alyx for a response and yet she still remained stubbornly silent, plainly not about to break character now. Fuck. How long had she been playing him? Weeks? Months maybe?

Darien stalked towards her. "Why didn't you tell me, huh? You think I suck that badly? That I couldn't play the part? That I wouldn't do whatever was necessary to make this work?"

She lifted her chin to look him in the eyes and spoke for the first time since arriving, "No. Your skills were never in question."

"Then why?" he asked at a harsh, hurt whisper. She had to have known how much damage losing his father would do to him and yet she had allowed him to think the man had died right before his eyes. Even now the pain churned in his gut, to be swiftly replaced by anger. Her lies, her keeping secrets from him once again. Secrets that she knew would damage him and yet she'd done it without a second thought.

She looked up at him wide-eyed and mournful. That mask crumbling before his eyes. "I… I can't." She stepped away from him. "I won't" Then she turned and left, the door sliding open and closed without being touched.

"Fuck," Darien swore, part of him wanting to go after her, but the majority thrilled she had left so he no longer had to look at her and know that she had been the one to cause him so much pain. He paced over to the windows staring out at the star-strewn sky for several minutes before turning to the pair of men who had not moved from their positions near the kitchen, as if realizing he needed a few minutes to cool down and process.

Eventually he said, "Why?"

"Why what?" Mason asked, sounding concerned.

"Why won't she tell me?" he asked plaintively. Yeah, he was pissed, but all he really wanted was to understand why she hadn't trusted him with the revised plan.

"Because she's afraid it'll change things and get your father killed anyway," Jarod answered. He moved into the kitchen, opened the fridge and pulled out three beers. He gave one to Mason, set on one the counter clearly for himself and walked across the room to offer the third to Darien, who took it after a moment.

He opened it and took a long swallow, wishing it were something stronger. "Change what?" he finally asked, wanting nothing more than to understand why she had chosen to create this rift between them.

"Change what she saw," Jarod explained, leaning back against the high counter, while his father settled into one of the chairs, open beer in hand.

Darien rubbed his forehead with his free hand. "What are you talking about?"

Jarod looked at the floor for a moment before he said, "A few nights ago Alyx had a dream, you call them Quicksilver dreams, I believe."

Darien shook his head. "No, she said it was bleed over from you."

Jarod gave him a grim smile. "That too, but it wasn't all she dreamt about."

"She saw me die," Mason stated, though Darien was uncertain if it was an assumption or if he had known all along and right now he didn't want to hear the answer.

Jarod nodded. "Our plan would fail, so we met here and we used her gift."

Darien backed up a few steps to sit on the deep window ledge. "Her oracle thing? But I thought she couldn't control it?"

"She can't," Jarod agreed. "Not on her own."

Darien sighed softly. "It takes the two of you to work fully."

"Yes. We ran through every scenario, every plan we had come up with and none of them were successful in saving your father's life." Only now did he open the beer and take a small sip of it. "She came up with new ones, tried every combination she could think of and in the best of them your father still died."

"And how is that the best of them?" Darien asked, a hard bite to his words.

"I was the only one who died," Mason answered, proving he'd been read in at some point over the last couple of days.

"There were scenarios where no one survived... including yourself." Jarod didn't look happy about any of this, but at least he was willing to talk. Yet Darien could still see in his mind the man standing over his father, gun in one hand cell phone in the other and the quite pop of the small caliber gun going off.

"So she thought outside of the box?" Darien questioned, wondering how she could ever think that risking Grams would be a good idea.

"I believe she initiated that scenario out of frustration only. I do not believe she had any idea it would be successful," Jarod explained. "I do know she looked for any other option before admitting it was the only plan that might work."

"Okay, I get that part…"

"I don't," Mason interjected, earning a ghost of a smile from Darien. "I know she has gifts, but you seem to be saying she can see the future. And not just in tiny scenes like you do." He turned to face Darien who tried not to be surprised that his dad knew about the Quicksilver dreams.

Darien rubbed the back of his head as he tried to come up with a simple and concise explaination for something almost beyond comprehension. "Uh, remember the whole Centre talk?" Mason nodded. "She was… bred to be able to see all the futures of a specific sim, so they could choose the right path to follow." He glanced over at Jarod who nodded.

"I have to play out the basic scenario, her mind takes over and sees all the possible ways it can go. One change, no matter how small can alter the outcome drastically." Jarod looked surprisingly worn, suggesting this hadn't exactly been easy for him either.

"So she let them hack the GPS? Knew we would end up boxed in?" It made no sense to Darien. If you knew what would be coming, you stop it, not allow it to happen.

"Knew I had made alliances and would be there," Jarod added. "Knew how everything would play out to the last detail." He paused to take a long drink before resuming trying to explain. "If she had changed anything major, it wouldn't have worked. Her changes had to be subtle and timed perfectly for those watching to be convinced his death was real."

"But I saw him shot." He waved the mostly empty bottle at his dad.

"So did they," Mason said with a grin. "Blood pack. Alyx exploded it. Jarod shot me with a paint ball. I have been assured that everything looked real to those watching."

Darien paled slightly. "Uh, yeah. Very real." He finished off the beer and set the bottle on the floor. "She got into our heads? Their heads? Made them see what she wanted?"

"Close enough. Yakiro fired that shot, Alyx deflected the bullet while making certain they saw him hit." Jarod gestured at Mason, who nodded.

"She prompted me when to play dead… or dying as the case may be. They saw what you did, from what I understand," Mason explained. "Jarod finished the job and posted proof of the kill online for all to see."

Darien had expected that as it had been part of the plan and part of Jarod's pretend. One of the traits of the character he had been playing. "But why didn't any of you tell me? I ain't that bad at my job."

Jarod shook his head. "We couldn't. You have no idea how badly she wanted to, how hard she tried to find a way to make this work with you knowing, but…"

"But I always died. You couldn't know," Mason finished. "It had nothing to do with your skills. She simply wanted to be certain no one got hurt any more than necessary." He rubbed at the spot where the paint ball had hit him and a faint bruise could be seen now that Darien had taken the time to pay attention.

"That can't have been the best solution. Making me think you were dead."

"Fawkes,"Jarod interrupted, "it was the  _only_  solution. In quite a few of the scenarios both you and Hobbes were killed. It was that path and no others that would succeed."

Darien wanted to accuse Jarod of lying to protect her, but there was no reason to. She had spent the last several hours with his unspoken blame being broadcast loudly enough for his dead brother to hear and she'd said nothing, not a single word to defend herself or explain.

Hell, she could have simply told him at any time after the scene had been swept clean of the evidence of what had happened.

"She made all of us see that. Even Yakiro and yet she had control of everything. None of it had to happen." He knew he was looking for reasons to be angry now, but could not seem to let it go.

Jarod frowned deeply. "Not everything. Hell, she controlled very little, she simply knew how it would play out and when to make the few moves it would take for it to go our way. There's a reason there's a body double in the morgue right now with injuries to match those he appeared to have received." He sighed and rubbed his face in his hands. "I know this is difficult to understand…  _really_  understand, but she sees  _everything_  when she is the Oracle. Can run through it forwards and backwards, see every step, how every tiny change alters the outcome. More information than even I can handle in just a few minutes of time. She sees it  _all_."

"How does she not break?" Mason asked softly, as if questioning the air more than either of them.

"Sheer stubbornness," Jarod responded. "She made a promise to get you out of this somehow, she fully intends to do that no matter what may bar her way." He glanced meaningfully over at Darien, who still wasn't happy with being left in the dark.

"It's been over for hours, why didn't she tell me? I mean the Official gets to be in on it, but not me?"

Mason looked over at Jarod who shrugged. "Son, the Official thinks I'm dead. Far as I know she told him nothing about this change in plans. Oh, he probably knew about us heading out to the farm, but that's it. I don't believe your partner Hobbes knew either."

Darien blinked at that. "So who did know?"

"Me, your father and Alyx. And I doubt she would have told him, except we needed the blood and to set up the details. Most of what happened today was unscripted, but exactly as she saw it," Jarod told him. "And she did not want to tell you. Not yet anyway."

Darien felt his blood go cold. She had wanted to continue to torture him? To force him to mourn and grieve and possibly break with this loss? Wanted to make him tell his Grams that they'd failed and killed her son? "Not yet?" he got out in strangled voice. "Not ever, you mean."

"No. She intended to tell you as soon as we were away, but you forced her hand." The first hints of irritation began to creep in Jarod's voice.

This made no sense. "Why wait? Why… torture me like this."

"Son, that was never her intent. And, yes, she fully understood how my death would affect you."

"And yet she did it anyway," Darien sneered.

"Because that was the job," Jarod snapped right back with. "To get him out of here alive and with a chance at a new life. With you, if I recall correctly. And this," he stabbed a hand at the wood floor, "was the only way to do that." He pushed off and stalked around the island counter and into the kitchen, clearly wanting to put some distance between himself and Darien. "She won't tell you because she's afraid it might change the outcome. So long as your father is still in town there remains a risk he may be discovered and killed. Bringing you here, so that you could see he is alive and well may change that."

That stopped Darien cold. "Could it?"

Jarod shrugged. "We don't know, but since the gift is hers she felt it better to not risk it and said nothing. We have no idea how she influences that timeline she's chosen after the cusp has been passed. She felt it safer to let it play out with her not attempting to control events. But you were so upset she realized she could not withhold the truth from you until certain your father was away from here."

Darien covered his sudden discomfiture by finishing the beer. She had done the right thing for the right reasons from a mission perspective, but from a personal one she'd gone about it all wrong, had lied and kept secrets that had caused him more than enough pain to break him if it had continued for any length of time. "Crap," he muttered under his breath.

"Son?" Mason asked softly, as if giving him the option to not respond.

"I… I think I may not be cut out for this spy gig," Darien admitted ruefully. Yeah, he had a knack for the physical work. Loved being able to semi-legally break into places and steal stuff. Loved the planning aspects. Had started to get the hang of playing a part to get the job done. But he completely sucked at compartmentalizing the different halves of his life.

Alyx excelled at it.

And that had been the problem this time. No matter how personal this job had been, she had been able to separate the two and focus on, what to her her, had been the more important half: the job.

Mason chuckled softly. "Skill-wise you most certainly are, but emotionally… you need some work."

"This job was too personal for you," Jarod stated, seeing the obvious. "And it's not something you can just turn off, be thankful for that."

"Yeah, 'cause that worked so well this time around," Darien groused.

Jarod looked over at Mason who looked pained for an instant. "Darien, sometimes agents turn it off for too long and never come back. Can never manage the personal side again. Alyx is so good at turning it off, at locking away the parts she doesn't need at that that moment…" He shook his head.

"She needs you to be that for her. She needs you to bring her back," Jarod finished. "She's better now that those personas have been removed, but she's been closing herself off since long before coming to the Agency."

Darien nodded slowly in agreement to that. Her husband had been the first to teach her how to separate the parts of her life. Hide the pain, hide the bruises, hide the damage - physical and mental - and pretend to be what he wanted just to survive from day to day. The Agency had ripped her from her former life, changed her appearance, and forced her to start over complete with a new name. "But how do I do this job if I can't be like… all of you."

"The best you can," Mason answered. "Alyx is right, you will never be a traditional spy… and that is not a bad thing. Be glad when you go home at the end of the day that you can still care. Most of us can't after a few years."

"But what if it gets to be too much?" Darien asked in a hushed tone, the room having fallen eerily silent.

"You get out," Mason told him, his tone serious. "You walk away and don't look back."

 

~^~^~^~^~

 

False dawn touched the sky when he finally left the apartment, his father and Jarod off to their transportation out of the great state of California. Probably a private jet that the Pretender would be piloting. Darien had locked the apartment and headed down to the garage wondering how he was gonna get home and debating the merits of calling for a cab at this hour. Then he saw her car, sitting in its old spot.

Of course, she had made certain he could get home. Leaving herself stranded because in her mind he always came first. It was stupid things like this that forced him to realize she cared for him beyond all measure, beyond her own comfort and well being.

Yeah, she'd probably just called a cab, much like he'd been contemplating, but the point had been made. No matter how angry or upset she put him first.

Darien felt worn, exhausted, burnt out and in need of a hug. If he simply went home, where she most likely had  _not_  gone, he would not get the latter.

He dug out his keys, thumbing through them for the one to her car, the sweet Jag looking abandoned and forlorn to his eyes` in the poorly lit garage. Aside from being certain she would not have gone home he had no idea where she might be. If she really needed distance from him she might have taken up one of the out of town jobs sure to be waiting for her on the Official's desk and be halfway 'round the world by now.

He slid into the driver's seat, not surprised she'd already adjusted it for his much longer legs and put the key into the ignition, but did not start it. He tapped the steering wheel with one finger as he contemplated what to do. He couldn't just drive around, hitting her usual haunts and hope he found her.

But that wasn't true, not really. He leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes, allowing the stress, the memories, the pain and terror of the day slip away and focusing on that spot in the back of his head where she lived. It took a few minutes, but he eventually felt a tug, a sense of her, which meant she hadn't decided to block him out even though he'd spent a fair part of the day hating her for what she had allowed to happen.

He shoved that aside violently. He had to forgive her or they would end up broken beyond repair.

If that hadn't happened already.

He didn't want to be over. He wanted to spend his life with her, but it had become obvious that it might not be possible. He.. she… they had too much baggage and no matter how much they loved each other the crap they had brought with them might very well tear them apart.

And they had just bought a fucking house.

Time to bite the bullet, he supposed.

He started the car with a roar, the sound echoing off every surface in the garage, and shifted into gear following that tug of her into the early morning darkness.

 

He found her at the beach. Kensington Beach to be specific. He knew exactly where she would be; sitting on the rocks, looking out over the water, knees probably drawn up to her chest, chin resting on them, arms hugging them tightly.

He sat in the parking lot, debating how to approach her until actual dawn had begun to tint the sky with blue far off to the east behind the hills and buildings. He screwed up his courage, mulling what would he would say when he actually saw her.

He didn't really want to apologize as the reaction had been nothing but honest given what he had known at the time.

He found her staring out over the water as expected, but stretched out. Hands behind her, the rocky surface surely cutting into her palms, legs out before her, ankles crossed, and appearing relaxed instead of balled up and tense.

He stopped a dozen feet behind her and said, "You know, we own a view better than this one."

She snickered. "Yes, I suppose we do. Just wasn't too certain of the welcome there."

Darien sighed softly. "Neither was I." If you'd asked him hours ago he would have said no, she would not be welcome in their home, but now… now he could only hope she wouldn't leave. "I won't apologize."

"I know, and I don't expect you to." She glanced up at him for a moment and then turned away, her gaze back to the slowly lightening sea. "I just…"

"What?" They needed to talk this through. He needed to hear, from her, why she had made the choices she had.

"I just don't understand why you're so… upset with me," she finally said in a soft voice, the confusion evident in her tone and her glance back at him.

All he could manage to do was to stand there in silence. He wanted to yell, to sputter incoherently at her. Verbally smack her about for being a callous bitch who had done everything wrong in the last twenty-four hours.

He watched her back tense as his emotions plainly leaked through to her.

She interrupted his silent rant with, "What did I promise to do?"

He twitched at the question, knocking his anger and frustration off the rut it had become entrapped in. "Save my dad," he responded, words short and sharp, barely able to escape the confines of his throat without snarling his displeasure at her.

"And what did I do?"

He closed his eyes and swallowed hard, not wanting to answer the question for some reason. "Save my dad."

She tipped her head up to stare at the cloudless sky, the distant stars fading as the sun came closer and closer to breaching the horizon. "Then what did I do wrong?"

He had expected confused and plaintive, not sad and unhappy. She had done just as she had promised; he could not deny that for one second. His father was alive and healthy and off to get a fresh start at living. Still, the memory of him being shot  _hurt_. And to know she could have ended his pain even before it had occurred… well, it bothered him. Bothered him that she would be willing to cause him so much pain without a even a hint of guilt about it.

"I… you picked the job over me. That… that hurts."

She sighed heavily and shook her head, and he could only hope that meant she understood the entire novel's worth of ranting that actually accompanied that admission 'cause he really didn't want to have to say it out loud.

"Then we have a problem, I suppose." She drew her knees up and shifted slightly to sit more on her tailbone, which had to be uncomfortable as all hell. "Jarod told you why I chose as I did."

"Yeah," Darien answered even though it had not been a question. "And I get it, much as I can anyway. You did what you thought was best to complete the mission." He knew the words sounded bitter and he feared this would not be the last time she chose work over him… over them.

She whipped her head about to glare up at him. "Yeah, I did, 'cause that  _was the job_ , just in case you had forgotten."

"It wasn't a goddammed job," he snapped, frustrated that she could consider it anything but personal and important as all hell.

"Yes it was," she snapped right back. "Once the Agency became officially involved that is exactly what it became: a job. And as lead I get to decide the need to know, which, as always, you can't stand."

Okay, yeah, he hated being kept in the dark on things, especially those that might get him or someone he cared about dead, but he had no issues with her being lead. She excelled at it and could handle all the minutiae without needing dozens of folders to keep it all organized the way Hobbes did. He loved working with her and wished it happened more often, he just could not absorb why she had kept him so far out of the loop this time.

His silence had apparently gone on for too long as he tried to figure out how to respond to her accusation.

"Hell, this is a fair portion of why I won't marry you these days."

Her words were barely above a whisper, but she would not have spoken out loud if she hadn't wanted him to hear everything.

"And why is that exactly?" No way in hell he'd let that bombshell just slip past.

"Because you would still expect me to leave," she stated, turning about to meet his eyes. Hers bright in the almost dawn light even though they remained in shadow. "I could promise to be by your side forever with a Catholic Priest performing the ceremony complete with love, honor and  _obey_  and you would still push and make assumptions and find any excuse possible to justify your misplaced belief that I will inevitably leave you. We just bought fucking house for heaven's sake. Why do you insist on believing I'm going to leave at any moment?"

"I… I don't do that," he argued half-heartedly, even though deep down he knew her words to be the truth.

She shook her head, laughing bitterly. "Christ, Dare, you're thinking it right now."

He wanted to belie that point, but since as she had so astutely noted he had been thinking it. "So, when are you moving back into your apartment?" It would explain the furnishings he'd seen. Clearly, no one else had rented the place, which meant it was still hers.

She huffed. "I'm not. Jarod's alter-ego was using it. He needed work space outside of the house to sell the Pretend."

"Oh," Darien mumbled, realizing that made a lot of sense, but it didn't explain why the place was still in her name. "But you don't deny it's still yours?"

"D, I had just signed and paid for a two-year contract when we decided to move in together. Instead of breaking it I chose to hold onto it. While not useful as a safe house as such, there are others, like Jarod who can use the place." She shrugged. "If I'd had any clue it was going to be an issue I'd've taken the loss and broken the lease."

She sounded irritated, justifiably he supposed. He had made an awful lot of assumptions, just as she had accused, most of which had been wrong in one way or another. "So, you're coming home?"

She gave him a puzzled look that clearly marked him as an idiot. "Of course. I am not going to be the one to prove your fears right. If you  _want_  me to leave all you have to do is say so. But otherwise I'm not going anywhere."

Darien felt a surge of relief flow through him. She would not leave him, he knew that. At times it just seemed so very hard to believe. He sighed softly and moved a few steps closer, the beginnings of building shadows being cast out across the water; you could now easily see where the sunlight began and the darkness ended, the curve of the horizon visible in the far distance.

"Good. For the record I definitely do not want you to leave. I just can't seem to get rid of the fear that you will." Truth enough for the moment. "And this whole mess with my dad. I get that I took the job too personally, but - I can't unsee what I saw."

"I can fix that," she said. "You'd be stuck with both sets of memories, but it might help."

"You can do that?" He sat down feeling more than a touch shocked.

She gave him a tiny smile. "I can do that. But let's not advertise that to the 'Fish, okay? He'd have me doing all sorts of shit I really don't want any part of."

"Fair enough." He shifted beside her, watching her as she stared out over the water. "What are we gonna do about the work/personal thing? The leaving it at the door idea didn't work so well when we let it  _in_  the door."

Alyx snickered. "Well, I am hoping situations like that don't come up too often, but you are right, we need to figure out a way to work together that won't impact our relationship more than necessary."

"Any ideas on that?"

"Simple, we don't work together, or, if we must, not when I am lead."

Simple indeed. "And if I'm lead?"

She gave him a droll look. Of course she wouldn't have a problem with that given her ability to compartmentalize the various facets of her life. "But I like working with you and you're awesome as lead."

She shrugged. "But you can't handle me deciding on the need to know, and as lead I have to be able to."

He frowned slightly, hating she was right.

"This isn't some 'kneel before Zod' lecture, just the simple facts. You prefer that we are open and honest with each other, but we both know that is not always possible on this job. So, we make it clear to the Official that we are not to work together unless necessary."

Darien shook his head. "He'll say we're putting us before the job."

"We will be," she stated, plain and simple. "Ultimately that's the more important aspect of my life. The Agency is a necessity for now-"

"No it's not," he interrupted, cutting off the rest of her justification, whatever it may have been. "It might be a convenience, but you, at least,  _do not need_  the Official or the Agency any longer."

She blinked, clearly taken aback by his words. "What would you suggest then?"

"Stop being my dad," he chuckled.

She just closed her eyes for a long moment as if uncertain what he meant. "Dare-"

"I realized something this… yesterday when we were standing on Gram's front porch. You have all this power and I'm not talking your gifts here, though that's part of it. You retask a satellite at the drop of a hat, you ask favors from people high enough up the government food chain that the 'Fish  _blinks_  and yet you think you need the Agency to get by?" He reached out and tapped her on the nose. "Even I'm not that dumb."

She shook her head, either truly not understanding or faking it damn well. "What are you trying to say?"

He sighed softly, somewhat disconcerted at her seeming inability to see what he and his father had so easily. "I mean exactly what I said, 'stop being my father.' Family is so important to you and yet you stay away from yours out of fear."

"Well, yeah. You have been following along the last few years, right?" Irritation had begun to creep into her voice.

"Yeah, I have, especially the last few months. Alyx, baby, you have The Centre afraid of you. Who the hell else would be stupid enough to even try to touch you and yours?" He took her hand into his and twined their fingers together. "Screw the Agency, you don't need 'em. Bring your kids home."

She twitched. "You're nuts."

He shook his head. "No, I'm not. Sweet thing, I get that you're afraid, but you don't have to be. You can have your cake and eat it too. Quit the Agency. Start your own business, hell, go into security. Between your computer skills and psychic ones, you'll be at the top of the industry in no time. Bets you could even get Patrick in on it with specially designed computer systems."

"But… but what about you?"

"What about me? I could stay with the Agency, I s'pose, or I could just ride along on your coattails. I think I might have some insight on designing security to keep thieves out." Oh, that could actually be fun. And much like that dream he'd had once upon a time. "Your lab already has all the formulas I'd need, and while the 'Fish might be pissed I'm certain we could cut a deal that'll make even his greedy little heart happy."

She stared at him as if he'd taken a swan dive into full blown insanity. "Claire and Bobby?" she asked weakly.

"Let's see, Bobby'd bring all his contacts along if you happened to hire him and I'm betting a certain lab would be more than happy to hire someone of Claire's caliber. 'Sides I know she's dying to work on the QSX Project." He grinned, hoping she'd return it, but her eyes just got wide instead. "We can do this. I  _want_  to do this.  _Our_  family. All together."

He swore he saw tears forming in her eyes and wagged a finger at her. "No crying, but, yes, I am serious. You have enough power to raise a frickin' army to defend your kids should it be needed. And… and you need them. Even I realize that."

"But I thought you… we… kids of our own?"

"Any reason we can't do both?" She shook her head. "I didn't think so." He turned away from her to look out at the water in order to give her a minute to digest everything he just told her. She seemed stunned, frozen into immobility, and he could not help but be touched by her reaction. Talking about her kids could be challenging because of how much she missed them and while he'd made it clear in the past that he considered their safety his responsibility as much as hers this might be the first time she'd realized he truly meant the words. Saying he cared was nice, but acting on it? That would mean the world to her.

And he should have done it sooner.

She shifted over slightly so that their arms just barely touched.

"Yes?" he asked, sensing she had something of great import to say.

"I want you to know that I appreciate what you just offered more than words can say, but it doesn't change the real issue, and adding my kids into the mix won't work as a band-aid." Her voice faint, the pain she did not want to inflict on him with her words evident in the emotions leaking through to him.

Darien flinched, physically and emotionally. He'd just made  _the_  grand gesture of their relationship and… and she'd essentially said it wasn't good enough.

"Darien G. Fawkes, don't you turn this about on me when you know I'm right." She grabbed his hand, refusing to allow him to pull away, and squeezed tight, making it clear she planned to hold on, so he stopped fighting before she crushed his fingers. "If you mean this-"

"Of course I mean this. I want you happy." He did and he knew he alone could not do that for her. She put so much effort into protecting others that even their time alone was colored by it. Their home a prime example of that. The security measures designed to keep them safe, the purchase of the house done through so many shell companies that even God would never figure out they had any part of it. "I know you love me, I know you would do anything for me, but I also know you've… settled for me." He lifted their hands to kiss her fingers, the taste of sea water and salt on her skin making him realize she'd been out here for hours. "You need your family with you, even if… even if it's without me."

Yeah, he'd step aside if that's what it took, but he'd be the first to admit that was not what he wanted.

"D, for once stop trying to be all noble and listen to me, okay?"

"Uh, okay," he responded in confusion. She sounded both amused and irritated at the same time.

"If you mean this…"

Darien had a sudden feeling of deja vu.

"-then bring it up again in six months."

"Why six months?" he questioned feeling a touch stunned.

"Because if we can't work out our issues by then…" She shrugged.

"Then we have bigger problems and there's little point in dragging your kids into it," he finished, not hating the idea. "Why so long?"

"I considered a year, but knew you'd balk at that. If you convince me prior to then we'll revisit this discussion." This time she was the one to lift hands and kiss fingers, trying to ease the sting of her words and it worked well enough he supposed. And, he had to admit, it was a reasonable compromise.

"Plus it gives us time to plan our escape," he pointed out, not hating the idea.

She nodded. "And plan how to tell my kids I've been alive all this time without them never wanting to see me again."

"Ah, hell, Alyx. Angry for a while, maybe, but your kids will be thrilled to have you back." He meant the words. Yeah, he'd been an idiot where his dad had been concerned, but he had grown up without him. If he'd been a kid, even a teen, he would have welcomed his father back with open arms and tears. It would have been hard, but he would have rather had his father back than to continue living without him. And it was still true now he supposed; he just had to let go of the bitterness and cynicism those extra years apart had pounded into him. "They'll adjust and we'll make certain they're prepared to handle anything the world throws at them."

He bumped her shoulder eliciting a clear hiss of pain. He shifted slightly and pulled up the sleeve of her shirt to reveal a bloodied bandage. "You're hurt? When did that happen?"

"Yakiro shot me."

Darien blinked, certain he would remember  _that_. "At the dam?" She nodded. "He could have killed you," he stated in a hushed voice, realizing all too well how close he had come to losing her, especially given he still had the memory of his dead father rattling around in his head.

She shook her head. "Nah. He knew he couldn't risk that. 'Fish'd have his head." She used their hands to tug the sleeve back down, hiding the evidence. "Once I showed up at the dam with Mason he knew the miss in Calgary wasn't. Since he'd want to get even I let him get his pound of flesh out of the way. He even loaded a regular slug just for me."

"You  _let_  him shoot you?"

"It was get it out of the way now or be looking over my shoulder for the next several months." She looked him in the eye. "It's not bad, a flesh wound if you will."

"Still, you got shot and I didn't even notice." Guilt washed over him. He'd been so consumed with his own concerns that he'd never even noticed the most important person in his life had been hurt. "You are amazing, you know that?"

"Some days more than others, apparently."

He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Hush, you. Though the 'Fish is gonna be pissed he can't pick Perdue's brain for intel."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing is it? He would eventually use that relationship against you and get pissy with me about the debriefing deal." She tipped her head over to lean against his shoulder, her need for sleep being leaked to him through the contact.

"Guess there's no need for the intel anyway."

Alyx laughed softly. "I already have all the intel."

"Huh? When did…" He trailed off thinking. "When you hugged my dad on the porch. He gave you everything then, didn't he?" Damn, that was a bold move on both their parts. And it met the letter of the deal made: info for a new life. Darien knew Alyx hadn't expected Mason to honor the deal, at least not for the Official, but for her? For his son? Yes. He'd give them that info in order to help keep them alive.

"Not specifically planned that way, but yeah. It'll take some time to sort through, but I'll get it all into the servers at home."

"Good." He tipped his head to rest against hers, the morning breeze kicking in as the sun made it high enough to cast their shadow on the rocks before him. "C'mon, let's head home and get some sleep."

"Not yet, 'kay? I just need a few minutes, here, with you not hating me." She turned to rest her forehead against his shoulder, her need in every line of her body. Her pain easily felt even without their mental connection. She felt bad for what she had done, but he knew she'd do it again if the situation happened again.

"We'll talk to the 'Fish tomorrow. I just don't want him using us not working together as an excuse to whore you out more."

She nodded, rubbing her face against his arm like a cat marking her territory. "Tomorrow. Just us today."

"Yeah, just us." They needed time alone. Time for him to let go if the hurt. Time for him to let go of the past.

Time for him to trust again.

Trust her.

Trust that she meant every word she said. That she loved him. That she would stay with him for as long as he wanted her. That one day she might marry him; have his child, whims of fate permitting.

He just had to let go of that fear of being left alone.

"Love you," he whispered into her hair, the wave of peace coming from her assuring him she'd heard the words and she knew that he'd meant them. He closed his eyes, the sun warm on his back and chose to just be for a while.

 

 

_The great innovator of the 20th century, Steve Jobs, stated, "You can't connect the dots looking forward you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something: your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path."_

_The past I knew, those dots I had believed in for so many years, that path I had followed, had shifted and still led me to the very same place here at the Agency. Two truths, two paths, both different and yet the same and they had led me here to… her. And she, I had decided, would be my future._

_All that remained was to walk down that path._


	10. postscript

_postscript_

Claire sat down at the table, Alyx had clearly been there for a while, her laptop open, files spread across the tabletop, a half-filled cup of coffee being ignored in favor of hand-written notes in a lab journal. Even upside down Claire could tell Alyx was working on a chemical formula.

"We are having lunch, yes?"

Alyx lifted her head, another pen tucked behind her left ear, much to Claire's amusement. "What? Yes, of course. My treat."

Claire slipped out of her jacket and set beside her on the cushion. "A working lunch I take it."

Alyx nodded. "Yeah. I didn't want to discuss this at the office. Too many ears." She set the pen down, picked up and sipped the coffee, then grimaced. "Cold coffee, ick."

Claire laughed softly. "What are you working on?"

"A problem," Alyx muttered. "This is going to sounds nuts, but I will swear to you it's true. On the day his father was killed Darien went Quicksilvermad without having a full overdose of toxin in his system."

"That… That shouldn't be possible."

Alyx's lips quirked. "Least you didn't say it  _couldn't_  be possible."

"Where you and Darien are concerned I've learned to never say anything is impossible." Claire pondered the situation for a few moments, ideas of how rattling around in her head, but she wanted to hear Alyx's information first. "What did you see?"

Alyx closed her eyes, tipping her head to the side. "Doe was standing over Mason, having just delivered the kill shot. Darien charged him, knocked him to the ground. The pistol and cell phone fall to the ground. Darien jumps atop him, Doe face up. Darien wraps his hands about his throat, but not choking, just using his neck to pound the back of Doe's head into the ground." She opened her eyes to meet Claire's. "I tried to pull Darien off Doe, but he had a full mad on. Hell, he has bruises on his back from how hard I was hitting him, but I had to shock him to get him off. When he turned his head…" Alyx rubbed her eyes, and Claire could not help but notice she looked exhausted. "Claire, his eyes were full red, Stage Four based on the little I got from him. But after, his eyes were back to normal."

Claire didn't doubt Alyx's word, but perhaps she simply had misunderstood what she'd seen. "Alyx, he was only at six segments when I examined him later that day. Affected by the toxin, yes, that I can believe, but not with full red eyes."

"I know. I saw it and I have trouble believing it." Alyx tapped the notebook. "I've been working the problem and I can resolve half of it. Given his control over the Quicksilver, and knowing that the toxin is separate it is possible he could gain control over it as well."

Claire nodding, not disagreeing with her assessment. Even Kevin had remarked on his brother's unexpected skill with the Quicksilver. "But he does not produce the Counteragent, so even if he could produce the toxin he could not flush it from his system."

"And that's where I got stuck as well," Alyx admitted. "But presuming he  _can_  produce the toxin…"

"He might very well have figured out a way to counter it naturally given he's been exposed to the Counteragent for so long." Claire could not dismiss her concerns out of hand. "This could be a problem."

"No shit," Alyx muttered. "Could… could the toxin inhibitor have changed the gland? Changed him?"

Claire could hear the worry in Alyx's voice, her concern for Darien real. "Why wait so long to talk to me about it?" It had been over a week since Mason Fawkes had been killed on a dead end road at the foot of a dam.

"I wanted to see if it were possible first." She waved at the computer.

"I'm guessing by your tone that it is." It would take an amazing amount of control over the gland, but Darien had broken all the rules Kevin had thought existed when it came to the Quicksilver gland. Most of what Darien could do ran on that fine edge of possible and implausible. He amazed her every single day. "We'll need to go through everything. Every illness, every chemical, every drug that had even the faintest chance of affecting his system." She reached out and set her hand over one of Alyx's. "We'll figure this out."

Alyx ran a hand through her hair. "I know we will." She sighed heavily. "We can't tell him. Not until we know something… anything. He doesn't even realize it happened."

"Agreed. I will make up some reason for the tests I'll need to run. Maybe testing for a new toxin inhibitor."

"Or removal of the toxin gene. That would let you get away with a biopsy sample," Alyx suggested, making it clear she'd been thinking about this for more than just a few hours.

Claire nodded. "We may need your lab to run some of the tests."

"You'll have all the access you need. There will be credentials waiting for you when you arrive," Alyx told her. "I should warn you I do have ulterior motives in this."

"Aside from helping Darien?" Claire knew Alyx always had a plan,and always took the long-range view of things. And she knew Claire had an interest in the QSX Project and potential current applications. Opening up her lab would be the perfect tease. The Agency simply did not have the budget to purchase the equipment Claire really needed to do her research properly.

Alyx just smiled.

Claire shook her head and laughed. "All right, let's order lunch and get to work."

 

 

_finis_


End file.
